The Hidden Demigod's Story
by Andromeda Lazuli
Summary: Many people know of Percy's storys with the Greek immortal's, but what wasn't told was that of the young girl who lived in the camp after a terrible accident. Her story follows alongside his, but you must read it to find out her tale's to tell. [ON HIATUS UNTIL ENCOURAGED TO WRITE AGAIN!]
1. 00: The Arsonist and a Child

**Prologue: **_**The Arsonist and a Child's Tears**_

"Mama…? Why can't we go see papa? He always comes to see me at night on my birthday, but can we go see him this time for my birthday?" A little girl asked, her sapphire eyes gleaming slightly as she looked up at the young woman, who looked very similar to her, she called her mother. Her mother smiled softly and touched her cheek as she paused from brushing her long ebony black hair.

"I'm sorry, Annie… But your father wants you and I to be safe from his family. If they found out that you exist, he explained to me that they would try to kill us both. We care too much about you to let that happen…" She replied as Annie's expression grew a little grim.

"Oh… But we always travel because of what we are. Wouldn't that keep us safe, mama?"

"No, they aren't the type to be distracted for too long not to do anything about you. Because of who your father is, we must keep moving or else the monsters will chase you until you die… And I won't allow that, nor would your father." Annie started to tear up a little bit because of this fact, knowing that her mother would always tell her the same story about her existence having to be kept a secret. How her father had to only see them at night when everyone was asleep except for the souls and wanderers.

All this hiding made her feel terrible, but she wasn't going to let anyone know. She had to stay strong for her mother since of the type of life they had to live.

"And you remember where I told you to go if something unfortunate happened to me, right?" Her mother asked, gaining a small nod in reply then hugging the little girl protectively within her arms. A faint smile of melancholy upon her lips as if that would be the very last time that she'd be able to hold her child.

"That's a good girl… My sweet, little Andromeda…" She murmured as her eyes looked into the darkness outside the window, knowing better that they were never truly alone on their journeys.

"Now, Annie. Are you ready for the gifts I have for you? It may not be anything new, but it's something that I trust as well as want you to have." Without waiting for an answer, Annie's mother had placed a rosary-like necklace around her neck and a deck of cards in the young girls hands.

"That necklace was a gift from your father when I first met him… It always protected me and I hope that it does the same for you. And those are the tarot cards that I once used… They may be old and a little worn out, but they are more valuable because of their history with our family. Take care of them and protect them like they were your most precious treasure."

"I will…! Thank you, mama." She said softly as she touched the pendant that hung from the black and crimson red rosary, her fingers tracing over the Greek symbol omega as she slightly smiled at her mother.

"Now get some rest, Andromeda… You don't want to seem tired when you see your father tonight, do you?"

"No." Annie replied with a yawn and climbed into the bed, causing her mother to smile. 

"Sweet dreams, my little demigod…" She spoke softly and kissed her forehead before she left to a different part of the inn, allowing a darkened shadow to appear and materialize into the form of a man. He faintly touched Annie's face and pushed a few strands of hair out of her face.

"My dear child… Your time to shine will come and no longer will you have to hide yourself from everyone. The time isn't now, but you will be great… Not even Zeus will be able to harm you… My beloved daughter." The man whispered as he gently took one of her hands and slid a ring upon her middle finger, which had an elegant obsidian gem in the shape of a little heart, before leaving a small stuffed toy of a three-headed dog under her arm and leaving the room.

An hour or so later, Annie felt like she was choking from something, waking up to see the room was full of dark smoke. She could hear people screaming in fear and feel a sense of dread all around the small inn. The building was on fire and there was still people inside.

Quickly, Annie grabbed a few little things and placed them in a bag before rushing out the door, trying to find and assist as many people as she could to escape the burning building. Once everyone was outside, she looked around to see someone in particular and important was missing. Her mother wasn't in the crowd of people. In a panicked state and ignoring the fire men's orders, Annie rushed back inside with tears clinging to her eyes.

"Mama! MAMA, WHERE ARE YOU?" She cried out, only to find a woman standing in the smoky lounge room.

"MAMA!" Right when she was about to reach her, something heavy had knocked her down, causing her to scream in pain from the intense heat that was burning her skin. Her screams caught her mothers' attention, shock and sorrow filling her deep blue eyes.

"Annie… I'm sorry, my child, but it's my time to go. I had foreseen this happening to me and not even your father can stop the Fates. You must live on without me now, my precious daughter." She explained as her body was slowly engulfed in flames, reflecting off of the young girls eyes and tears as she watched helplessly as her mother was dying in front of her.

"N-no… NO! MAMA!" Annie cried out and weakly reached out to the burning corpse of her kind-hearted mother. Soon after her mother's body collapsed to the ground, the young girl was pulled out from under the burning piece of the building and outside with the other survivors.

The other people thanked her and left as quickly as they came, not noticing that she was crying or even to ask why. That was when she heard it. The sound of someone chuckling, enjoying the scene that was playing out now. With tear-filled eyes, Annie looked up at the man who was laughing; no one even noticed the fact that he was there except for her.

Quietly, she snuck up behind him, listening to him rant softly to himself.

"That should teach them…! No one makes a fool out of me and gets away with it…! Hope those gypsy girls go to hell for what they've done…!" He laughed, not even seeing the young girl standing behind him or even noticing that what he just said was going to be the death of him.

"You… You did this…? Y-you killed my mama…?" The man then turned and looked at the little girl behind him, smirking at the fact that she was crying.

"Yeah, and nothing you can do is gonna change that. Why don't you just run back inside and burn with that wench you call your mama?" Through her tears, her eyes shifted to onyx black as rage surge within her, filling her body with power.

"You… YOU'RE GONNA PAY FOR THIS!" Annie screamed out as she lunged at him, instinctively aiming at soft parts of his body, making him cry out in pain. As the man doubled over in agony, he looked up at Annie in absolute terror.

"N-no more…! Mercy!"

"Mercy…? Were was your mercy when you killed my mama…? YOU DON'T DESERVE THE CHANCE OF HAVING ANY MERCY!" Right then, she stomped on the ground, creating an abyss to suddenly appear and swallow the man up before vanishing just as it came.

"Ask my papa for mercy and see what he'll say, murderer…" She then fell to the ground crying, sobbing violently at the fact that her mother was gone. The only attachment to family she had with her and now she was gone.

A minute later, she heard the sound of hooves tapping upon the stone street, drawing her attention to a figure that was coming towards her.

"Are you the daughter of Anna Lazuli, little girl…?" Sniffling, Annie looked at him sadly as she stood up, inspecting the person before her. Although nothing surprised her at all, she noticed that from the waist down that he was a white stallion.

"Y-you're a centaur…?"

"Yes, I am. Now please, tell me if you're Anna's child." 

"I am… M-my name is Andromeda Lazuli, but my mama called me Annie for short… Wh-who are you and why are you asking me who I am, sir…?" With a smile, he kneeled down in front of her and wiped away a few stray tears from her face.

"My name is Chiron. I'm going to take you to a place called Camp Half-blood where you can be kept safe from now on…"

"M-mama told me about that place… She said that when she was gone or when I'm not safe any more, that I should find you and go to the camp."

"Then I made your job easier, little Annie. Let's be off then if we have nothing else to do." Annie simply nodded as she climbed onto Chiron's horse half, the two of them leaving the burnt remains of the small inn and the death sight of Annie's mother in England behind.


	2. 01: The Fear of Trust and Friendship

**Chapter One: **_**The Fear of Trust and Friendship**_

It had been three years since Annie had seen her mother die, laying in bed lifelessly as she stared out the window. Tears stained her pale face and her throat was sore from how much she cried and screamed. She knew that there was other camper's there that probably had the same problem that was a parent's death, but she couldn't stand seeing others at the moment for the thought of loosing someone again. Each time a camper tried to comfort her or cheer her up, they failed and normally refused to try again after a few times. This showed that she knew that no one could withstand being around her at all, making her sadness deepen and force her to feel more hollow.

Upon her skin had bandages from small, self-inflicted cuts when she had nightmares of that night in London. Because of her dreams, she decided to stay awake to avoid them, so she would normally do tarot readings and write them down or read some books that Chiron had given her when she asked for them.

"Annie, are you okay? You suddenly went silent." She then looked towards the door and weakly smiled at the centaur that brought her to camp.

"Yes, but my throat's sore… Can I have some warm milk with honey and clovers, Chiron…? Mama always did that when my throat was hurt." She asked faintly and he then smiled, glad to see that she was all right.

"Sure, Annie. But tomorrow, I have to take up a lead on a demigod and assist however possible. You and I know that Dionysus won't do anything to help you, so one of the camper's will have to watch over you." Annie then sat up and looked at him with a worried expression.

"B-but, Chiron… You know that I can't let others around me. Bad things happen to people near me and they'd find out who I am…! I can't risk that since mama always said that my existence had to be kept a secret because I'd get in big trouble and get mama and papa in trouble, too." Chiron looked at her in confusion and sighed a little, coming over to her and gently patting her head.

"Everything will be fine… I'll make sure that someone will watch over you until I return. Nothing will happen, Annie."

"I-if you say so… But the person needs to be able to keep a secret. If they say they can, you have to make them promise on the River of Styx that they wouldn't say anything about me to the other camper's until it seems like the right time that I can show myself. I have a hard time trusting others because I can never stay in one place long. Life of a gypsy and it's what I am." She explained, holding onto his hand with her pixie-like ones.

"Right now, you're the only one I can trust other then myself. Chiron, I can only trust you because mama told me to when I had to come here…!"

"Well, you'll find someone else you can trust soon enough here at camp, Annie. But for now, let me get that milk for you. You'll be fine and taken care of." Without arguing any more, she nodded and watched as he left her alone again in the room, only returning with the drink she asked for and leaving. She watched as he left the campgrounds outside the window, fearing what was going to happen while he was away.

After an hour and a half, she heard the sounds of footsteps heading towards her room. She had started crying five minutes ago after she had done a tarot reading and getting news about what her father was doing from a ghost. Right then, she went quiet when there was a knock on her door, holding onto the stuffed animal of Cerberus close to her.

"Are you okay in there? Chiron told me to watch over you while he was gone." A young teen said as he walked into the room, smiling at her when he saw how frightened she was.

She inspected him as he entered the room, every last centimeter that she could see. The boy seemed about nineteen years of age, tall and muscular with sandy blonde hair and a nice smile while looking like a surfer or some kind of person who spends their time on the beach. But that wasn't what caught Annie's attention about him. No, that was far from it.

The thick white scar that ran down from his right eye to his jaw drew her attention away from his eyes. A surge of danger entered her thoughts as the young girl looked at him. She didn't notice anything else that was wrong, except the look in his eyes.

"You must be the little girl I'm supposed to watch. I'm Luke from Cabin Eleven." She was silent for a moment then nodded.

"I… I'm Andromeda… But Annie for short. " Annie said quietly, holding the stuffed animal closer to herself.

"Your scar… A monster did it to you… And it is a painful memory… I have one, too, but it's different from yours. " She said softly, gazing at Luke with her dark sapphire eyes, making him flinch a little. He then looked away from her and touched the side of his face, not happy that she pointed out his constant reminder of his quest.

"You don't have to tell me about it, Luke… I don't like talking about mine or letting others see it either. Chiron's the only one who knows about it… And me. But I haven't let him know who my immortal parent is. I'd get mama and papa in trouble and I'd be in more danger then needed." He then looked back at her with a little surprise before sitting on the bed beside her, trying to show that she could trust him.

"You're not very trusting of others, are you, Annie?" She then shook her head, cuddling the Cerberus plush toy in her arms.

"All I had to do was trust my mama and papa as well as anyone else that's my kin. Papa warned me that no one would like me if they knew who papa was to me… So I can't let anyone know." Right then, Luke noticed a dark figure show up in the shadows of the room. In seeing his reaction, Annie turned to it and pouted at it.

"You're not supposed to come here when I'm not alone…! Go away for now." The dark form looked like it nodded to her in agreement before vanishing again and her looking back at him.

"You weren't supposed to see that… Before I can even start trusting you, can you keep a secret from anyone else about me? If so, then you have to promise on the River of Styx. Papa and mama always told me that if I wanted an honest deal or promise that they have to do that." He nodded in shock, seeing that this little girl was more then she appeared to be.

"Sure I will, Annie. I promise on the Styx that I'll keep you a secret. But why don't you tell Chiron about who your parent is? That way you can go to your cabin and not have to stay here all alone." She then shook her head again in disagreement.

"I can't. Papa would get in trouble and get mad at me if I said it and Chiron said that I was unstable to be around other campers and out of his close watch… He takes good care of me. So I don't mind being here in this room alone. After all, until three years ago, all I had was mama and she was taken away from me." Annie sniffled, now having tears in her eyes again and burying her face into her toy.

"An-and now I have no one because papa d-doesn't come see me anymore like he did late at… At n-night because he got to see mama, too…! He now only c-comes on my birthday and ign-nores me all the other d-days of the year…! And it's all b-because of that murderer's fault in L-London…! He…! He k-killed my mama and n-now I'm all alone…!" She cried, surprising the teenage boy about her.

"H-he's gone now because I… I s-sent him to see papa when he asked for m-mercy…! B-but mama can't c-come back and e-everything I learned c-came from mama and sh-she's gone now so I… I don't know wh-what to do anymore…!" She sobbed, causing Luke to hug her as he tried to calm her down again and stop her from crying anymore.

"There, there… Don't cry, Annie. Um… I don't know how to help you about that, but I can teach you some things. I may not be a good substitute for your mom, but it doesn't mean I can't be your friend. Do you have any friends, Annie?"

"N-no… I… I couldn't have friend's b-because mama and I moved around t-too much since we're g-gypsies. Traveling and making fr-friends never really mixed…" She whimpered, looking up at him as he hugged her and wiped away a few tears from her face.

"Then I'll be your first friend, you can trust me with anything, Annie." She then sniffled and looked at him, surprised that he'd do that for her.

"R-really…? I've n-never had a friend before… What do friends do?" Annie asked, making him chuckle a little.

"Well, for starters, they tell each other things about themselves and make sure the other is alright when something bad happens to the other friend. So, can you tell me things about yourself that you haven't said, Annie?" She was then quiet for a moment and held her toy tighter to her chest, laying her head down on his lap like a pillow.

"I was born in New Orleans eight years ago near a cemetery because that's a safe place for us gypsies. Papa was with us when I was born and stayed with us at night until day time was near… After I learned how to walk, run, perform and speak well enough, mama and I left to travel like we normally did while papa came before I went to sleep to play with me and give me simple gifts to protect myself." She sniffled, shifting herself very little to where she was comfortable as Luke looked down at her.

"Then everything went wrong three years ago when mama did a tarot reading before my birthday… I knew already that mama was worried for me, but when I tried to save her from the fire, I got hurt badly and she said that it was her time to go and not even papa could stop the fates from taking her life. She died that night… And I couldn't do anything to save mama as I watched her die. Mama always knew things before they happened, so we were always safe from the monsters and people who wanted to hurt us, but that man took mama away from me that night and I didn't get to see papa either…"

"What happened to the bad man, Annie? Did he get arrested for killing your mom?"

"No…" Annie said quietly, confusing Luke a little.

"Then what happened to the man who took her away?"

"He's dead now. I killed him because he killed mama and laughed about how he murdered her. Now he knows not to burn places down when he could've killed many people that survived and told me to run back in the burning building and die, too… He was a very bad man… Should I have let him live, Luke?" For once, he stared in horror at the little eight-year-old girl he was supposed to watch over, gulping a little at the thought of what she could do to people who she thought were bad.

"Um… N-no, Annie. But you… You killed him? Just like that on the spot when you found out?"

"Kinda, I don't really remember the details on how I killed him… But that mean man can't hurt anyone ever again like he did to mama and… Me…" She said softly, now falling asleep with her stuffed toy Cerberus. He looked at her and gently moved a few stray hairs away from her pale face.

'_She must've been really tired after all. Chiron did tell me that she was unstable and very emotional, but maybe all she needed was someone to talk about all the things on her mind. I should probably tuck her in before I leave for my cabin and come back later. Annie must've been the child that no one could handle, but she's just a sad little kid. All she must need is someone to talk and play with.'_ He thought as he picked up and moved the little girl to where she could sleep in her bed properly, tucking her in as if she was his little sister. His smile faded a little when he saw the toy of Cerberus, knowing that not many people would prefer something like that as a kid, as well as recalling the dark shadow on the wall that she made go away earlier.

'_I'm betting I know why she says that she'll get in trouble. She's not an ordinary demigod.'_ Luke thought as he closed the blinds and quietly left the room, allowing Annie to sleep in peace.


	3. 02: Truth Between Friends

**Chapter Two: **_**Truth Between Friends**_

Night had came and left quickly, the rays of light waking up the young girl. Annie crawled out of bed and looked outside the window, seeing the other campers at their normal routine as well as anyone else there at the camp.

"I wonder if I should join them… No, I'm not ready and it's still too early for me to join the others." She said as she gently touched her dark rosary.

'_I wonder what Luke's doing right now…'_ As that thought came to mind, she heard a knock on the door and looked at it, staying quiet for a second.

"Um… Wh-who is it…?" She timidly asked, not sure if it was a good idea or not. That's when the door opened, revealing the blonde haired teen from yesterday. He was smiling as he entered the room, placing a tray for her down on the small table that was near the bed.

"Forgot about me already, Annie? I brought you breakfast since you didn't come down with the others." With a shy smile, Annie sat down on the bed and looked up at him.

"Thanks, Luke… I'm not quite sure if I'm ready to go outside the big house yet. The other campers that came in here to talk with me don't really like me, I guess… It maybe because of how they can't do anything to help me and I probably scare them when I tell their future. I'm really good at doing that, but mama was a master. She didn't even have to look at the cards to tell what they were going to say." She said with a little bit of a warmer smile, catching his attention.

"You must really respect your mom a lot just to smile like that. I kinda envy you for that, Annie."

"Envy me…? Why? Mama was the only person I was ever around for all my life that I didn't really need anyone else until it was time for me to go alone like mama did when she turn sixteen." Annie stated, making Luke laugh a little bit.

"Because of my mom, I ran away because she scared me when she went into those weird fits of hers." Gently, Annie took his hand in his, still looking up at him.

"Think I can give you a reading, Luke? It makes things easier for me to understand without the person having to remember and explain it to me and I can tell you your future as well without using my mama's cards." He nodded, curious about what she meant by a reading. She turned his hand over to look at his palm, softly tracing the lines on it with her fingertips. What caught Luke's attention was that her eyes suddenly appeared to grow a little misty in color, like a fog suddenly covered her eyes.

"She used to suddenly cry out things and terrify you as her eyes glowed a ghastly green, forcing you to escape from her care and come here with two girls and a satyr. Your mama was struck by the curse of the oracle, making her seem like she was scary to the point of insane to you… You got that scar of your face on a quest, seeing your father when it was over but he didn't even really pay any attention since he was busy working when you came. Because of that, you got really mad at him. That anger that you carry will draw you to pain and misery and, if not dealt with properly, your own destruction. There's more danger set in your path then you think…" Annie then fell silent for a moment, closing her eyes as she released his hand and taking in a sharp breath before looking at him again with a pain in her deep sapphire eyes.

"I think I dug a little too deep into your past and future… I'm sorry if I scared you like I did everyone else." She said in a murmur, not wanting to scare another person away. Luke gulped as he looked at her, not really understanding what she meant in that reading of hers.

"At least you didn't say it in a riddle like the oracle, but you got that all just from the lines on my hand?" She then nodded, hoping that he wasn't going to leave and not come back to see her again like the other demigods that she met.

"That's a surprise. I didn't even know that people could really do that and I thought the fortune tellers that do it for money only messed around with peoples heads."

"They do and they make us gypsies look bad… Those phonies parade around in flashy outfits with fake accents and play around to where they think that they could do anything just by giving out stupid lies and make money off of those poor people who actually listen and believe them…!" Annie pouted, making Luke laugh at the expression upon her face.

"I don't know why the other campers don't like you, Annie. You're just a cute little girl and a demigod just like almost everyone else here. I'm betting that you'll be able to come join the others outside soon enough if you keep cheering up like you have around me."

"Really? I'm not so sure… They probably don't want me to come out like you and Chiron do." He gently ruffled up her ebony hair with a smile on his face.

"Well, I can't wait for you to come out and join us. By the way, I noticed the toy you have and was curious about it. Who gave that to you?"

"Papa gave it to me three years ago the night mama died… He must've came when I went to sleep as well as the ring on my finger. Papa always gave me little things that were easy to carry because of how I traveled so much but I never got to see him except for those times he did come… So I never been to his home at all, but I know I will. I look too much like mama for him not to worry about me three years ago." Luke's smile dimmed a little and he sighed.

"You know, I was like you before. Thinking that I was worth seeing by my dad, but the gods are too busy to pay attention to their children. You'll learn that yourself soon enough, Annie."

"But papa does care about me… He said that soon I'll be accepted by everyone once things change for the better."

"I've been wondering, who is your dad? I could probably guess because of little things that I've noticed, but I want to make sure." He asked and when Annie got really quiet and looked like she was about to escape from him, Luke gently held her tiny hand in his and smiled.

"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone since you told me that you'll get in trouble and so would he and your mom. If you want, I can make another promise on the Styx." She then shook her head while lightly biting her lip.

"I trust you enough to tell you, Luke… But only you can know and no one else."

"Okay, Annie. So, who is he?" Annie then grabbed her toy again and placed it in her lap, as if it was her pet.

"Hades, God of the dead and ruler of the Underworld. Papa hasn't come see me since the fire, so when I'm able to, I'm gonna see if I can go see him. I'm betting he'll be happy to see me again."

"Just as I thought. Well, I'll come back later unless you come out of here and join us, okay? If you do, either find me or anyone else from the Hermes cabin."

"Okay, Luke!" Annie replied cheerfully with a smile, watching him leave and close the door to the little room before taking the tray of food and start to eat.


	4. Author's Note

**A.N. ~** If any of you who read my story(s) are wondering why I haven't updated anything as of late, I've been having a trouble with writer's block and can't think of anything to continue the chapters that will come along eventually. I am very sorry for the delay that I am unable to finish the next chapter, but I will make sure that I will update.

Arigato-gozaimasu (_thank you very much_), dear reader(s), for being so patient.

With love,

~ Andromeda "Annie" Lazuli


	5. 03: Doubts,Tarot Cards,&Bad Omens Oh,My!

**A.N. ~ **YAY! I finally got over my writer's block problem and now, I finally wrote the next chapter to my story! ^_^ Unfortunately, you all will have to wait until I create the next chapter. Well, please enjoy, review and ABSOLUTELY tell your friends about the story so that I don't feel bad if someone doesn't want to read my hard work on this story.

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**Chapter Three:**_** Doubts, Tarot Cards, and Bad Omens! Oh, My!**_

It had been a long time since Annie told Luke about her father and with each day, she became more drawn to join the others out in the camp grounds. She was on the first floor, looking outside the window slightly as she watched the other demigods.

'_Maybe I should go outside for a little while… Luke said that I could go and find him or someone from his cabin when I did. But… What if it's not the right time, yet…?'_ She thought to herself and sighed faintly before sitting down on the floor.

"I'll try and see about going out tomorrow… But I'll check out the camp a little while everyone's in their cabins before the harpies come out." Annie muttered, looking at the clock. Her dream last night was definitely a warning. She could easily tell that it would happen soon, since her dreams sometimes play out scenes of the day before the real premonition was played out in her sleep.

"Chiron will come back soon, too… With that boy soon to come as well. So I should help the satyr get that boy into the camp tonight. The spirits have been saying that papa isn't happy about the thief that's been taking things from the gods… I hope nothing goes too wrong…" She muttered then noticed she said a bad choice of words before shaking her head and looking out the window again. She saw Luke was helping some of the other campers and smiled, noticing the ones that he told her about. And, although she wasn't going to leave the big house just yet to join the others, she knew that Chiron would return and that a new demigod would join them at the camp. The thing about how she did a tarot reading about what the new camper would bring along with him, which caught her attention quite well, was that each time the Wheel of Fortune kept appearing in the spread.

It was going to be a big deal once the new half blood joined everyone else.

As usual, she ignored Dionysus and his bored ranting but didn't argue when playing games with him and the satyrs since that was as much as she could handle with everyone else other then the usual visits from Luke. With a sweet smile, Annie walked into the kitchen silently and grabbed a bottle of water before heading back up to her room to see about if she could get a reading in before Luke came to talk and somewhat play with her again.

The room was dimly lit as usual and was unusually stuffy for once. It kind of got on her nerves. Without a second thought, she unlocked and opened the windows, allowing the room to receive some fresh air as well as allowing the sound of camp life to flow into the room. Sighing and closing her dark eyes, she pulled out her mother's deck and began to shuffle it over the small desk. Unexpectedly, three of the cards suddenly separated themselves from the others and landed on her lap. With wide eyes, she looked at the cards while ignoring the others.

"Major arcana twenty-one, the world, major arcana eighteen, the moon and… Major arcana ten, the wheel of fortune…" She commented to no one but herself while her eyes, once again was filled with a misty appearance.

"The fate of everyone's lives will change soon while it will follow the path that is placed before the one who shall travel through the confusion and illusions..." Annie murmured to herself then shook her head as she heard a knock on the door, seeing that Luke came as he promised her.

"Am I interrupting something, Annie?"

"No, Luke. I just got finished with a divination. We should expect someone coming soon who will change everything... Mama's tarot cards and my dreams pieced it together for me, so I know that life is going to change very soon for all of us." He then smiled and ruffled up her hair a little, chuckling as he did.

"Aren't you a smart little girl, Annie! So, can your cards tell us when you'll join us outside?"

"Nope! I already know that once the demigod from my readings and premonitions comes that I will. But not now… It's not time yet and the others aren't ready to accept me at camp."

"Well, once you do, remember what I told you." She then smiled at him while she now gathered her cards, placing the three that she read out so that it would remind her to write them down in her journal for readings. He looked over her shoulder as she was writing, reading over her words as they were placed on the paper.

"What do the cards tell you and what does this mean?"

"You want to know? The world means everything comes full circle as well as the beginning and the end of everything... The moon means illusions and causes confusion while the wheel of fortune technically represents fate. They're saying that the fate of everything will be changed while everything will be deluded with confusion and deception… It's not all too clear about what this means, but I will find out soon and tell you. I know that Chiron is going to return today as well as a satyr with the new demigod from my readings and dreams. Unfortunately, they're being chased by the Minotaur… He'll live at a high price and he will be very important." She stated with a smile, knowing that she could trust him to tell her prediction.

"He'll change everyone's life once he comes and I know that I'm right. Mama and papa both say that I'm very accurate in my predictions and divinations. So I know that the boy is going to be trust-worthy enough and I'll finally leave from staying in doors to join the others." Annie said, drawing Luke's attention and filling him with uncertainty.

"Do you ever make mistakes, Annie?"

"Only when I first started learning how, but mama taught me well and made sure that I knew every card by memory. Even papa came to me for readings before, he said he doesn't trust the Oracle after what happened years ago. Don't know what that means, but he likes it when I do it since I remind him of mama… He always said that I look like her more and more each year. But I know that he's only keeping his distance from me to protect me from the other immortals." She said as her smile faded a little, closing her journal and placing it on the shelf with the other ones and her books.

"I think I should get going before the others think I left the camp or something happened to me."

"Okay, Luke. I'll see you later or tomorrow, then." Annie replied with a smile, watching him leave and close the door before she sighed.

"What I didn't say about my readings is that I got a much more horrible reading this morning… And it scares me." She said faintly to herself as she looked at her cards, looking at three in particular. Three that resided within the major arcana: the fool, number twelve the hanged man, and number sixteen the tower.

The combination of those cards sent chills through her body and a tremor down her spine. It was an ominous omen. Tragedy will strike eventually and soon.

"There's a traitor amongst us who is only the beginning to all the chaos that will soon arrive within all our lives… I fear that there will be many casualties because of these clashing predictions." She then looked at the window after she gathered her tarot cards.

"Papa… Please give me the strength to help everyone once this tragedy strikes."


	6. 04: Late Night Fight

**A.N. ~ **YAY! I finally added the next chapter **AND** got Percy to finally show up! XD Unfortunately... It's still having the same problem with his mother "dying" during the chapter because of the 'mutant rodeo bull'. But we **ALL** know how it really ends up for this. ^_^ Well, enjoy the newest and my longest chapter so far! Please leave a review because I worked hard on this one without having too many problems with writer's block... And it's worth **10 pages** on microsoft word, so it's **SO NOT SHORT **if anyone tries to say that about this chapter. Everything looks shorter on this website because of how the layout is.

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**Chapter Four: **_**Late Night Fight**_

About around dinner time, Chiron had returned to the camp grounds. She watched him from the first floor as she did earlier that day as he was greeted by the other campers, smiling since she'd soon be able to meet the boy from her premonitions… And expect the worst to come. Once he came into the Big House, Annie ran up to Chiron and hugged him as best she could around his torso since she had to jump to do so.

"You're out of your room, Andromeda?" Chiron asked, surprise filled his voice as he looked down at the young girl while she let go and smiled brightly at him.

"Luke's been talking and playing with me since you left, Chiron. He even told me funny stories about the Hermes cabin and other campers!"

"Well, I'm glad to hear that you've finally made a friend."

"Yep! Also, I've been writing everything like you told me to and I've also been doing some readings… We need to expect dark times ahead of all of us, Chiron. The Great Prophecy is about to begin and everyone needs to work harder on training from what I've watched from the windows." Before he could reply, Annie dropped her head and looked at the floor.

"I'm sorry, Chiron… I shouldn't have said that right now. That was a bad idea to say… I've been having visions and images fill my mind when I sleep and do tarot readings, and not many of them are good. I thought I should warn you first since you care more about the camp then Mr. D does…" Without even looking at him, she could feel that he was staring at her with nervous terror at her words.

"Andromeda… You should watch what you say out loud like that, child. We'll consult about this later in closed quarters if a subject is as grave as you've said." Chiron explained, gently patting her head.

"But why would you have to worry about such things? You're only eight years old." She then looked up at him, taking in a deep breath before replying back.

"Because… I'm very sensitive to situations like this and can use my cards to predict and read the obstacles soon to come. You'll need to set up a bed for someone tonight… He'll be filled with fatigue from fighting and get the Apollo cabin ready to take care of the satyr that's accompanying him. I'll help out take care of the new demigod, if that's okay with you, Chiron." He sighed and looked at her carefully, obviously seeing that she was clearly more in tuned with skills that were most likely the reason why people feared her even though she was only a young child.

"All right, Andromeda… I'll make sure that they're both prepared and if you wish, you can help. But you must make sure that you don't cause any trouble while the new camper rests."

"I will!" She chirped before heading upstairs again, just to make sure that she had her weapons that she always wore, making sure that they were ready for battle if she needed to jump into the fight. Her fingers glided over her rosary, recalling how that one night was like when Chiron first brought her to Camp Half-blood.

The sky was dark as he had carried her away from the burning remains while she watched the ashes catch the wind just a little before he had carried her farther and farther away from the building. She then shook her head before looking out the window, waiting for night to come as she began to sharpen a pair of bladed rings made of two different metals that were attached to a pair of chains, one was a glittering bronze that reflected her appearance in it like a mirror while the other was black as obsidian and an unknown substance to the other demigods.

But she knew it all too well.

Her father had explained to her the day he gave them to her as a gift. The dark ebony metal was called Stygian iron. A much rarer substance than what the rest of the demigods would use but also it was more durable and practically indestructible from what he told her. She then returned them both back to the form of bracelets and slipped them around her wrists, decorating herself with her ring, hair clip and her choker necklace that would most likely not be used.

"Now all I have to do is wait for night… It's going to be raining. I'll take a shower after I help get them into the camp." Annie spoke softly to herself, faintly smiling as she watched the pegasi fly about the camp grounds.

Once the camp had become quiet and almost absent of life with the exception of the cabins, Annie quickly snuck out and dashed to where Luke told her about. A huge, pine tree that he said was the remains of a dear friend, named Thalia Grace. This was her resting place. Gently, Annie touched the bark of the tree and looked up at its branches with a faint smile.

"Luke told me you were a great and powerful demigod once… I can believe that because of how you protect the camp from monsters. I wish I could've met you before this happened… We could've been great friends even though our fathers don't like each other." She said before leaving the barrier, making sure that she was hidden from normal sight a distance away from the camp where she saw the first part of her dream was supposed to take place. Within only a few minutes or so, she spotted a Camaro speeding its way down the road, knowing that must've been the car with the demigod inside.

Just as she was about to step out of the shadows, a bright blinding flash struck the earth and the sound of an explosion erupted from the road, almost making her scream out from the sudden strike. When she looked at the car again, she noticed that it was over-turned onto its side with a large crack on the roof. It was a lightning strike, scaring her for the fact that she might be found out but more worried about the passengers in the now trashed Camaro.

'_Zeus… He attacked them…! I better be careful.'_ Annie thought as she suddenly found herself running towards the car, knowing that if she didn't help out, they were all going to die from the on-coming monster that was chasing the car. Once she reached the Camaro, she looked inside and noticed that the satyr wasn't moving.

"Grover!" A boy called out, drawing her attention to him real quick before she crawled into the car with them.

"He'll be okay, he seems like a good satyr and it shouldn't be his time to die yet." Annie explained as she took off her skull hair clip, turned it into a dagger and began to cut them out of their seat belts.

"Food!"

"See? He's still alive. I never did like cars… Too easy a target for him to strike people to death. And before you ask, I'm here to help you get to safety. You're in grave danger and it's very important you make it into the barrier alive. I may not look like much because I'm only eight years old, but I'm probably the best person and the only one you can really trust to save you at the moment… I've seen what happens tonight in two different ways and if I don't help you, you're dead." She explained as she tried to help the satyr, whose name apparently was Grover, to sit up right and wake him up. She could feel the hairs on the back of her neck start to stand up on end, meaning that they had to get to safety faster.

"Percy, we have to…" The woman, who seemed to be his mother, began to speak but was cut off mid-sentence.

I glanced where the boy named Percy was looking at, seeing a large and dark silhouette through the mud-spattered rear windshield. Annie gulped as she recognized the shadowed form that was coming towards them. Its bulky body was fuzzy and inhuman-like, brandishing a pair of sharp horns upon its head.

"Who is—"

"Percy," His mother continued from moments ago, her face and voice were deadly serious as she spoke.

"Get out of the car." Annie watched as his mother threw herself against the jammed door while Percy had tried his as well, failing to open it.

"Climb out the passenger's side! Percy—you have to run. Do you see that big tree?"

"What?" The little girl shook her head in disbelief that he was the one who'd change everything and sighed.

"The big white tree on the hill, Percy! We need to get you there, you'll be safe but your mother will be safer without you near. It's not interested in living people like her!" His mother then looked at her, still trying to help get them out of the car.

"You must be from the camp. Please, get my son there."

"I will, ma'am…!" Annie replied, trying not to speak so loud that the monster that was coming towards them would hear.

"Good…" She answered, looking at Percy again.

"That's the property line. Get over that hill and you'll see a big farmhouse down in the valley. Run and don't look back. Follow this girl there and yell for help. Don't stop until you reach the door."

"Mom, you're coming, too." Annie then noticed the expression upon her face, feeling her chest tighten at the sight of it. Her face was pale and her eyes were filled with sadness, just like her own mother three years ago when she died.

"No! You _are _coming with me. Help me carry Grover."

"She can't come with us onto the property, Percy… She's not…!" Annie tried to explain but stopped and kept her mouth shut as she tried to help get Grover out of the car.

"She's not what? What are you trying to say?"

"I'll tell you once we're safe. If I stop now, we'll all be dead and even though I don't want to leave your mother either, it's what we have to do. She'll be safer that way!"

"Food!" Grover moaned a little louder, making her look at the satyr in confusion.

"Is he always like this when he's knocked out?"

"Most of the time."

"Okay, then he's not gone crazy… But we need to hurry. He's coming closer and I know we'll have a fighting chance at living if we're not in this heap of junk." She stated as they were trying to drag Grover out of the car. Annie then noticed how Percy was starring at the monster coming towards them, shaking her head as she sighed. It was obvious that he was in shock from seeing a monster as dangerous as the one coming after him was.

"Percy, listen to me and hurry up and get moving fast…!"

"But what about my mom and Grover? And what about you?"

"He doesn't want them, they're not his target. I'll be fine since I'm trained enough to survive an encounter like this."

"What are you talking about, kid?"

"You're dense… I'm starting to wonder if you're really the guy that I've been seeing in my premonitions and in my readings now. And my name isn't 'kid', Percy. It's Annie and I'm trying to help you not die from the monster that's here to kill you…!"

"You're crazy! I'm not going to leave my mom just because you say a monster's after me. Mom, tell her that you're coming with us." She was then quiet for a moment and Annie could see that she wasn't going to support him on this situation.

"He doesn't want _us_." His mother told him.

"He wants _you_. Besides, I can't cross the property line."

"Smart woman, you understand the barrier pretty well." Annie commented with a sad smile, knowing that this wasn't going to end well for any of them.

"But…"

"We don't have time, Percy. Go. Please." The young girl then noticed just how angered he was becoming, seeing how his eyes seemed like a squall at sea as his rage engulfed his thoughts for the moment. He then climbed across Grover, almost stepping on Annie's hand in doing so if she didn't move it in time, and pushed the door open into the rain.

"We're going together. Come on, Mom."

"I told you—"

"Mom! I am not leaving you. Help me with Grover." Annie then sighed and looked at his mother, silently asking if he was always thick headed and getting a nervous smile in reply, before joining him outside and continuing in dragging the satyr out of the car. To Percy, he must've been light because it seemed easier to move him then it was when she was trying alone and then it was even easier because his mother began to help, which left her with being a guard for them as they began to stumble uphill through the tall wet grass.

She then noticed that he had looked back, seeming like a bit of fear had ripped at his face when he did.

"Don't stop and look at it, Percy…! That'll only slow you down and you're only allowing it to catch up to us like that. Now hurry your teen butt up the hill and into safety before the monster does catch us…!" He then blinked, being stunned and seeming to be in disbelief about the over-grown cow that was following them.

"That's—"

"Pasiphae's son." His mother simply said, catching her attention.

"I wish I'd known how badly they wanted to kill you."

"But he's the Min—"

"Don't say his name. Names have power." She warned, causing Annie to smile a little more at her.

"You're really a smart woman, you remind me of my mama before I came here three years ago." Annie then looked ahead, seeing that Thalia's tree was still too far away, making her smile vanish into a pouty frown while Percy was glancing behind himself again.

'_We're still too far from the camp… And I can't reveal who I'm related to, so I can't get us there faster and out of harms way…!'_ She thought as she placed her hairclip back into her wet hair to keep it out of her eyes while she was ready to release her chained chakrams from their bracelet form around her wrists.

"We need to pick up the pace before he notices us… We can't let the bull get to us with an unconscious satyr and an ill-prepared boy. I wouldn't be able to defend you for very long since I'm still young and my abilities are limited at the moment."

"Food?" Grover moaned again.

"Shhh…" Percy told him softly.

"Mom, what's he doing? Doesn't he see us?"

"His sight and hearing are terrible. He goes by smell. But he'll figure out where we are soon enough."

"And that's why we need to hurry and get you to safety before it—!" Right then, it bellowed in rage, making Annie flinch and turn to see the Minotaur pick up the Camaro by the roof. He raised it over his head and threw it a distance down the road, skidding in a shower of sparks for about half a mile before stopping and then finally exploding. Annie then looked up at Percy, not sure if they should be worried or not.

"Um… Was it a bad thing that he destroyed that car? Because if not, then good riddance to that piece of junk."

"Don't worry, that was my step-dad's Camaro."

"Does that mean it's a good thing it exploded?"

"We don't get along."

"Oh."

"Percy, when he sees us, he'll charge. Wait until the last second then jump out of the way—directly sideways. He can't change directions very well once he's charging. Do you understand?"

"How do you know all this?"

"I've been worried about an attack for a long time. I should have expected this. I was selfish, keeping you near me." Annie then grew sad as she remembered how her mother was like, keeping her safe and always by her side. She must've known the dangers but it seemed that she didn't care; all she wanted was for them to live together. She then felt tears well up a little around her eyes but held them back as she awaited for a fight and was trying to get them to hurry to safety.

"Keeping me near you? But—"

"Stop trying to argue with her, she's a smart woman to protect you as long as she—!" Right then, there was another bellow of rage and the Minotaur started tromping uphill.

"He caught our scent…! MOVE!" Annie yelled, trying to get them to safety. She could see the fatigue that his mother had even though she was still carrying Grover, only wanting to help her survive and see that her son was safe within the barrier.

"Go, Percy! Separate! Remember what I said." She noticed how obvious that he didn't want to leave them, seeing the hesitation he had. Quickly, Annie helped pull him away from them and decided to only breathe through her mouth since the smell of the monster was harsh and rancid, making her feel like she wanted to puke.

Before she knew it, the creature was bearing down on them. His black eyes were filled with hate and even though she wasn't breathing through her nose, she could still smell the stench of rotten meat.

He then lowered his head and charged, those razor-sharp horns were aimed straight at his chest and fear obviously was making him freeze in place. But it wasn't that hard too see that he was taking his mother's advice and dodging at the last second. Following his example, Annie had dived to the opposite side and was lying on the ground for a moment, feeling the tremors radiating from his charge.

When the Minotaur was about to charge again, Annie felt her heart leap into her throat when she saw the direction it was aiming. He was starring at Percy's mother and Grover. She tried to yell out to draw attention to herself, but her voice went mute. Nothing wanted to escape from her mouth as she was trying to scream or anything that would be loud enough for the monster to pay attention to her.

"Run, Percy! I can't go any farther! Run!" But they both stood there, frozen in their tracks, as the monster charged at her. She tried to escape as she instructed her son, but the Minotaur wasn't going to be fooled for a second time. His hand shot out and circled about her neck as she tried to escape, her legs flailed as she tried to struggle while he just simply lifted her off the ground.

"Mom!" That's when she looked at her son, only able to tell him 'go' with her last words in a choked voice. Then, with a roar of anger, the Minotaur clinched his fists around her neck, dissolving and melting into a golden light as if she really wasn't there.

There was then another blinding flash and then… She was gone.

"No!"

"I should've done something before this happened! I knew this was going to happen and I couldn't stop him from doing this!" Annie cried out, feeling the tears she was trying to hold back stream down her face, mixing with the rain that draped over her skin.

When the Minotaur was about to do the same to Grover, Percy was the first to act as he pulled off his red rain jacket. A smart, yet _really_ stupid, idea to have when facing the Minotaur.

"Hey!" He screamed, waving his jacket and running to one side of the monster to draw his attention.

"Hey, stupid! Ground beef!"

"What kind of idiotic insult is—!" The monster then roared and turned towards him, shaking his meaty fists as if he was protesting about his comment.

"Okay, never mind… That actually worked…" But as Percy was trying to put his plan into action, which looked like an old cartoon trick by putting the red jacket in front of the Minotaur while having a tree behind him. Unfortunately, it didn't seem like his plan was going to work.

He then jumped up, using the monster's head as a springboard and landed on his neck, like he was naturally skilled at fighting monsters.

'He's using his battle skills now and he could've done something earlier…?' Annie thought as she watched him ride the Minotaur like he was from a deranged rodeo show. She then went over Grover's side, trying to make sure that he was okay while she was trying to wake him up as well.

"Come on, you goofy satyr…! Percy can't fight off the monster for very long without a weapon and I can't give him one of mine. Wake up…!"

"Food!" He moaned again, making Annie look at him dully.

"Boy, you're a big help…" She then saw that the Minotaur wheeled toward the two of them, pawing the ground again and was about to charge.

Instead of thinking things through, Annie stood to her feet and let her bracelets slip off of her wrists. Once they went past her finger tips, they became their deadly bladed ring form with the chains secured around her wrists. But before she was about to send her chakrams flying, she heard a snap, seeing that Percy had broken one of his horns off and causing him to finally be bucked off. He landed on the ground with a thud as he collided with a rock, obvious that his vision would be impaired for a while and probably have a concussion from the impact.

As the monster began to charge, Annie set her bladed rings flying at the bull, slashing at his torso and circling him in the chains that were attached as she was digging her heels into the ground and allowing darkness to wrap about her legs to keep her in place.

"KILL HIM, PERCY! USE HIS HORN!" And almost in an instant, the Minotaur bellowed in agony, failing and clawing at his chest as he began to disintegrate into a sand-like dust that began to vanish into the winds, leaving Percy with the Minotaur's horn still intact. The shadows quickly disappeared as she was breathing hard, feeling light-headed from the power she suddenly used.

The rain stopped, still rumbling in the distance and she almost fell to her knees from the fight. Annie replaced her weapons upon her arms again and stumbled over towards the boy, seeing that he was worst then her from the battle. He looked like he was about to cry and pass out from pain.

"Here… Let me help you, Percy… You're going to need your strength to get into the camp so you could rest. Let's carry him in where we'll be safe for the moment…" She said softly as she helped him to his feet, only gaining a nod as he actually began to cry from the loss of his mother. Annie couldn't help but try to be comforting to him, as they now both had lost their mothers to her father's domain.

"I'm sorry, Percy… I should've done better than I have. I knew this was coming and I couldn't do anything to change a majority of this battle…"

"Why are you apologizing?"

"Because, now you know my pain… And now you have to live remembering it like I do…" Annie explained to him as they reached the Big House, feeling him collapse once they got onto the porch. She then looked up to see Chiron and the girl that Luke told her about, named Annabeth. The old centaur looked at her in surprise for a moment before looking down at Percy with the girl.

"He's the one. He must be."

"Silence, Annabeth. He's still conscious. Bring him inside. And you, child…" He then looked at the young girl again, making Annie flinch a little since she knew that he was going to have a talk with her about this.

"What were you thinking of going out like this?" She then gulped while Annabeth looked at her for a brief moment then dragged Percy off so that he could be taken care of.

"Well… I knew they'd need my help, so I went to help them get to safety… But I couldn't save his mama. She was…" Annie then looked at the porch, wiping her eyes from the tears that were reforming and beginning to fall from her sapphire eyes again.

"There, there, Andromeda… The fact is that you're all safe now."

"But she reminded me of my mama, Chiron… And I couldn't save her either…!" She sobbed, feeling that she was picked up and carried inside, being taken back to her room for the night.

"You did fine, child. You fought and protected another demigod and made sure that he came here alive." Annie decided not to argue or reply that time as she was returned to her room, allowing her to cry until she fell asleep cuddled up with her stuffed toy of Cerberus.


	7. Author's Note 2

**A.N. ~** Sorry that all of you who read my story are waiting so long. I'm having trouble with other situations at the moment and I promise that I will try to get the next chapter up as soon as I can finish writing it. Also, the reason why this one is taking so long is because I'm having to translate English into French for certain parts in the dialog. Thank you all for being so patient for the story to continue.


	8. 05: Caretaking & Playing a Simple Game

**Chapter Five: **_**Care-taking and Playing a Simple Game**_

It had been a long time since she was able to remember what going outside the Big House was like, being locked away for three years would do that to your memory as well as your sanity sometimes. Every-so-often, Annie would make sure that Percy was well kept, seeing him wake up a few times but not saying anything as he did since she didn't want to bother him just yet. When he wasn't conscious when she was in the room, Annie examined his features and wrote down things on a pad of paper to report to Chiron about Percy's condition.

"You must be something to drag yourself from Thalia's tree to the Big House as you did after a fight like that. Well, I hope that I didn't scare you badly during the fight…" She murmured before leaving for a moment, knowing that Annabeth was going to need ambrosia for him to eat once she came to take care of him. Quickly, Annie returned to the room, seeing the blonde child of Athena. With a nervous smile, she gave Annabeth the bowl of ambrosia so that she could nurse Percy to health, but it was obvious that Percy would be embarrassed once he found out that he was drooling in his sleep in front of two girls.

"Thanks, has he woke up yet?"

"A few times but he went back to sleep after he did each time. I think it'll probably be two or so days before he wakes up completely. When he does regain some consciousness, you can question him before anyone else comes in… I can tell that you were talking about the Great Prophecy that night. I told Chiron earlier that day that the prophecy was about to begin and that we'll be in for the fight of our lives. Something tells me that this boy's very important… So I helped him in his fight to stay alive against… You know what." Annie replied, looking at her readings she wrote down, mainly glancing at the ones that were recent as well as the ones that scared her the most.

"Well, Luke told me that you were a great person. He's been helping me by watching over me for Chiron. You seem much smarter then he gave you credit for." At that comment, Annabeth smiled at her but before she could say anything, Percy began to open his eyes a bit.

"Oh! He's waking up again!" Annie stated, causing Annabeth to look back at him while she smirked, scraping drips of ambrosia off his chin like he was a baby.

"What will happen at the summer solstice?" She instantly asked, making Annie look concerned since she figured that she meant about how the Gods were arguing about a thief.

"What?" Percy asked, his voice seeming like he suddenly was granted a frogs voice. Annabeth then looked around nervously, apparently hoping that no one would hear her even though Annie was the only other person in the room.

"What's going on? What was stolen? We've only got a few weeks!"

"I'm sorry, I don't…" He was then interrupted by someone knocking on the door, causing her to quickly fill his mouth with the ambrosia so that he couldn't finish while he passed out again. Annie sighed as she left Annabeth with her patient, deciding that she was going to return to her room since she hadn't really been sleeping that much since the fight with the Minotaur.

'_Just a quick nap… That would be a good idea for me to do.'_ She thought as she closed her door and laid on her bed, not really caring that she didn't pull the sheets or covers over herself, but just wanted to lay there and rest for a while.

Things have gone as they had before, with the added medical attention to the unconscious Percy, but her tarot readings only began to show darker times ahead. Her room was warm, but she couldn't feel it through the chilling sensation that was sent through her body.

"Mama… If you were here now, you could've told me exactly what the cards were telling me to worry about. Why did you have to die…?" Annie murmured to herself before standing up and leaving her room, knowing that Percy was soon to be awake enough to have a decent conversation with instead of him being a frog or toad when he spoke. She had quickly made her way down the stairs and ran into the kitchen, pouring a glass of nectar to give to Grover so that he could let Percy drink it but she obviously knew that he'd probably recoil from her once she was near him.

Carefully not to spill any, Annie went outside to where Grover and Percy were. It seemed that Percy appeared more like a hospital patient instead of someone just recovering from a fight and fatigue. Just as she predicted, Grover flinched away from her when she came near, making her only smile sadly at him while she placed the glass down on the table.

"He'll need something to drink once he wakes up. I'm sorry that I scare you, everyone I meet gets scared of me one way or another… I can tell that even Chiron sometimes fears me for what I can do even though I'm so young." She said softly before pulling the blanket up a little more on Percy's lap.

"When you three were attacked on the road, I helped you guys out with the fight and escaping here but Percy was the one who should really get your praise after all he's done… I'm just someone who can't stay out of trouble, so you don't have to thank me. I watched the attack in my mind for many nights before it happened, so I knew that I had to help you both and from my tarot readings. I know I didn't get to introduce myself to you before, Grover. My name is Andromeda Lazuli, I didn't get to introduce myself to you so I thought it would be nice to do that now." Annie stated with a smile, only noticing that the sleeping patient was beginning to awaken.

She watched carefully as he weakly tried to pick up the glass himself, almost dropping it in the process. It was kind of hard to believe that he was supposed to from what her cards had told her, he seemed more like, if you didn't know better, a normal teenage boy who just happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time.

"Careful." Grover had said, drawing Percy's attention towards him and over-looking her, nothing that she really didn't expect from him in the first place. He was older than her and he had just lost someone really important to him as she had years ago. It was easy to see that he was trying to talk himself into believing that nothing bad happened from that night, she'd done it many times in the past as she had cried out for her mother and father. The truth was painful, but what she learned was that life was even worse since you had to keep living without those who you loose in the past, leaving them only as a memory.

"You saved my life. I… Well, the least I could do… I went back to the hill. I thought you might want this." Grover stated, placing the shoe box upon his lap. Annie flinched as she looked at Percy who was starring at the broken off horn of the beast that they battled, knowing that he was going to take the truth hard but didn't know just how he was going to take the news as others had when they lost a family member.

"The Minotaur." He said, kind of making Grover nervous about it.

"Um, Percy, it isn't a good idea–"

"That's what they call him in the Greek myths, isn't it? The Minotaur. Half man, half bull." His voice was demanding as he spoke, revealing that he wanted answers in an instant and making it easy to tell that, until now, he only thought of his heritage as old stories. Just mentioning the monster's name made the satyr shift in an uncomfortable manor.

"You shouldn't say the monsters name, or even the immortals names, so carefree, Percy. They're too powerful to say without drawing attention onto yourself from the recipients who you called out." Percy then looked at her, surprised when he saw the young girl who just spoke to him, as if he was trying to register the fact that she was actually a living being that was standing with them and that she was there.

"You again, how do you…? Never mind. So, Grover…" He said and looked back at the satyr that was with them.

"My mom. Is she really…" That's when Grover looked down while Annie walked over to Percy's side, placing her tiny hand upon his and gently squeezed it to try to comfort him but knowing that she couldn't do much for him.

"I said it that night and I'll say it again… I'm sorry that I couldn't do anything to change that outcome, Percy. I did all I could to help but I couldn't change the fact that you now are like me… Alone without…" Annie stopped as she closed her eyes and felt herself choke on her words. She then looked at him again, seeing that he was starring at the camp and the scenery, just as she did when she came to the camp for the first time.

His eyes looked full of emptiness, revealing that he felt lost and that nothing could make him smile anymore.

"I'm sorry. I'm a failure. I'm– I'm the worst satyr in the world." Grover sniffled then he moaned, stomping his foot so hard that it came off, revealing that it was filled with Styrofoam and a hole made for his hoof to fit inside it.

"Oh, Styx!" He mumbled, making her giggle until thunder rolled across the clear sky and causing her to flinch and press herself closer to Percy.

"Apparently, he's still mad that someone had the gall to steal from him… And he's blaming anyone that he can until he gets it back. He needs to stop being so harsh and quick to jump on our cases since we're not immortal like HE is…" Annie mumbled with a scowl, trying not to draw the gods' attention to her by saying anything that would link him to the statement. Her eyes then misted over for a moment as she saw the image of a normal man, disgusting and foul in appearance, within her thoughts then looked at Percy. It seemed that was caused by his worries about how his life will turn out now.

"I don't think you'll end up with that ugly looking guy, Percy… My cards told me that the gray sisters have something planed for you to be with him."

"How did you…?"

"It's in my blood because of mama. Things like visions happen to me often and because I was still holding your hand while you were thinking that, I accidently tapped into your thoughts… Still working on controlling my abilities since I'm so young." He then shook his head at what she stated.

"If you can't control it, why don't you have someone teaching you?" Annie's small smile then disappeared as she stepped away from him, looking at the ground as she tried not to cry again.

"No one can teach me now… My teacher was my mama and she… I've been here for a little more than three years now and she's never coming back. Papa won't even visit me anymore and now I'm alone… This place is my last chance at everything now because mama and papa told me to come here when I was alone." She sniffled, rubbing her eyes a little as she felt that she was about to cry again.

"I'm sorry, too, Percy… I tried to help you get here but I couldn't save your mama… Please forgive me and Grover…! We both failed…!" She sobbed softly, trying to stop herself even more. She could tell that she wasn't the only one that was getting emotional, since it seemed that Grover also seemed about ready to cry as well.

"It wasn't your fault." Percy said.

"Yes, it was. I was supposed to _protect_ you."

"Did my mother ask you to protect me?"

"No. But that's my job. I'm a keeper. At least… I was."

"But why…" He said, suddenly looking as if he was ready to vomit from the sudden nausea. She knew how that felt. For about two months, she wouldn't eat or drink anything at all from how strong the depression had a grip upon her heart.

"Don't strain yourself. Here." Grover said as he helped Percy by holding the glass of nectar for him and placed the straw up to his lips.

"Drink that… You'll feel better a little faster than if you just got bed rest." She said, trying to make sure that he wasn't going to just ignore their help. He then recoiled from drinking the nectar and she knew how that was like. Her first time drinking some left the taste of her mother's cooking, mainly something spicy like fresh gumbo or anything that was Cajun, but once it was all gone, so was that feeling. It left her hollow inside whenever she had to take some since she knew that would be the only time that she could taste her mother's cooking again.

Percy seemed to be in a dream-like state as he tasted the flavor-changing drink, only to stare at the empty glass once all of it was drained.

"Was it good?" Grover asked, gaining a nod in reply, while Annie played with the bracelets around her wrists.

"What did it taste like?"

"Sorry, I should've let you taste." Annie then flinched as he said that, noticing that Grover's eyes had gotten wide from that suggestion.

"No! That's not what I meant. I just… Wondered."

"He's not in a state that requires any, Percy. But because of what happened to you and your condition, you had to drink it. It's never the same to everyone, but something that they really loved."

"Oh. I tasted…" He simply answered her then looked back at Grover.

"Chocolate-chip cookies. My mom's. Home made." Percy finally answered the question while the satyr just sighed.

"And how do you feel?"

"Like I could throw Nancy Bobofit a hundred yards."

"That's good… That's good. I don't think you could risk drinking anymore of that stuff."

"What do you mean?"

"You'll understand soon and I guess this Nancy person is someone who should learn a lesson in humiliation, right?" Annie asked, only gaining an awkward silence from the two of them while Grover took the empty glass extra carefully and set it back on the table.

"I'll take that as a yes… Too bad that I don't know where she is, I could've scared her into a mental institute." The two older boys then looked at her in a bit of fear while she giggled a little.

"I'm a scary person sometimes for a little girl. Luke and Chiron told me that I am."

"Um… Right. Just being near you is scary enough, Andromeda."

"You can just call me Annie. It sounds prettier." She said with a smile, nervously giggling about the fact that she was scaring him so easily.

"Come on. Chiron and Mr. D are waiting." It was obvious that he wasn't going to allow them to help him with the horn, but assisting him to where he was supposed to go was the best thing they could do for the moment. He seemed stunned and in a daze as he saw the rest of the surroundings but compared to him, she was cringing from the bright light since she was still used to being in the dark for so long. The sunlight felt really nice on her skin… Just like she used to remember the feeling. She could tell that the next thing to do was going to be the hardest for her, getting along with other members at the camp other then Luke and Chiron.

When they could see the end of the porch, Mr. D, Annabeth and Chiron in his false wheel chair. The camp director still appeared as he always did to her, a grouchy god who was always unhappy and taking his anger out on everyone else because of how he was forced to work with the demigods. He was wearing his tiger-pattern Hawaiian shirt, which made him look like a bum in her mind while his nose was cherry red, eyes were big and watery as well as bloodshot, and his hair had the usual sheen of purple, just like the grapes that were normally pressed into red wine.

"That's Mr. D… He's the camp director. Be polite. The girl, that's Annabeth Chase. She's just a camper, but she's been here longer than just about anybody." Grover murmured to Percy, making him then look at Annie.

"But hasn't she been here long?" Annie then covered her mouth as she tried to hide the fact that she was about to laugh.

"No, I've only been here for three years. Luke told me that she's been here longer… I think. But he told me that I came to the camp at a younger age then her." Grover shrugged then decided to continue what he was trying to say earlier.

"And you already know Chiron…" Percy then looked towards the elderly appearing man, surprise rushing to his eyes as he spotted him.

"Mr. Brunner!" He cried out, confusing the young girl as she walked over to Chiron and smiled at him. The centaur smiled at her then turned to Percy, a mischievous glint in his eyes that made her curious about what was going through his mind.

"Ah, good, Percy. Now we have four for pinochle." He said then looked at Annie to where she'd just sit beside him while Grover and Percy sat at the table. Mr. D was grumbling faintly at the sight of the young girl, which she knew was that he'd wish that she wasn't even at the camp as she was, before sighing greatly from having Percy there.

"Oh, I suppose I must say it. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood. There. Now, don't expect me to be glad to see you."

"Uh, thanks…" Annie slightly smiled, although she just wish that she wasn't there because she never really could stand the God's crude personality.

"Don't worry, Percy, Mr. D is mostly like this all the time… You'll get used to being around him soon."

"And what is that supposed to mean, Anna?" She then felt pain strike her at reminding her of the reason why she was living at the camp in the first place.

"Mr. D… Please don't call me that, any name is better then being called that." Annie tried not to whimper, trying to hold back the small amount of tears that were forming. Chiron gently patted her on the head and wiped away the freshly formed tears from her eyes.

"It's alright, Andromeda… You don't have to cry about that so long as you remember to keep a strong hold on your emotions." She then nodded, deciding not to say anything any more.

"Annabeth?" She then came forward, bringing forth the fact that she was still there.

"This young lady nursed you back to health, Percy. Andromeda also assisted in taking care of you, but only when she was able to do so since she's still trying to break away completely from her room here." Percy then looked at her, causing her to flinch a little at his gaze.

"She's what now…?"

"Um… Technically, when I helped you that one night, that was my first time leaving the Big House since I first came here three years ago." Chiron sighed as he looked at the two then back at the young blonde.

"Annabeth, my dear, why don't you go check on Percy's bunk? We'll be putting him in cabin eleven for now."

"Sure, Chiron." Just as she was about to leave, she looked at Percy and it seemed like he was expecting something to be said in praise towards him. Instead, the blonde child of Athena just made a witty retort that she expected her to say.

"You drool when you sleep." She said, making Annie giggle and feel better about the previous moment that happened, then sprinted down the lawn, her golden blonde hair flying behind her as she ran.

"So… You, uh, work here, Mr. Brunner?" Annie then blinked and looked up at Chiron, complete confusion taking over her expression.

"Why does he keep calling you that? Did you trick, Percy? Well, it kind of seems a bit too easy to do that…" She was talking softly to him, making him chuckle a bit.

"Not Mr. Brunner. Annie's right that I've been deceiving you. I'm afraid that was a pseudonym. You may call me Chiron."

"Okay…" He replied, answering totally confused about what was going on apparently while he looked at Chiron.

"And Mr. D… Does that stand for something?" Annie could've sworn that he was completely empty-minded and now started to think that it was kind of pointless to save him from the Minotaur now.

"Um… Is he _**REALLY**_ this bad at figuring things out and is this actually the child that you left camp for that one time?" She asked, being shushed by the elder centaur for her question. Right then, she understood why he made her be quiet. Mr. D stopped shuffling the cards and he was looking at Percy as if disgusted about something.

"Young man, names are powerful things. You don't just go around using them for no reason."

"Oh. Right. Sorry."

"I told you that before just a moment ago… You really don't listen, do you?" Percy then looked at her like she had just said something completely insulting while Chiron patted her head softly, giving her the sign that it wasn't always the best thing to say what was on you mind.

"Now, Andromeda… You mustn't be too rude to him since Percy is still new here to camp."

"Yes, Chiron." Chiron then smiled and looked at the older demigod.

"I must say, Percy, I'm glad to see you alive. It's been a long time since I've made a house call to a potential camper. I'd hate to think I've wasted my time."

"House call?"

"My year at Yancy Academy, to instruct you. We have satyrs at most schools, of course, keeping a lookout. But Grover alerted me as soon as he met you. He sensed you were something special, so I decided to come upstate. I convinced the other Latin teacher to… Ah, take a leave of absence. And little Andromeda had been keeping me updated with her visions, readings and premonitions about anything dangerous that was soon to come… Even though some things were graver than someone would wish to hear." He stated, glancing at her, which made Annie flinch since she knew that he meant what she first said when he returned.

"Oh… That… I said I was sorry about saying that right when you…"

"You came to Yancy just to teach me?" Percy interrupted, making her sigh since that was a good way to stop the current conversation, while receiving a nod in reply.

"Honestly, I wasn't sure about you at first. We contacted your mother, let her know we were keeping an eye on you in case you were ready for Camp Half-Blood. But you still had so much to learn. Nevertheless, you made it here alive, and that's always the first test."

"Amy, you going to play with us?"

'_At least he called me something else…'_

"I… I'm sorry, Mr. D. But I'm not up to playing today… So much has happened lately and I'm still trying to get used to so much sunlight after locking myself away for years. And it's Annie, not Amy." She said simply, making his attention towards the young satyr and ignoring what she said about her name.

"Grover, are you playing or not?"

"Yes, sir!" Grover said, trembling, as he took the fourth chair, full of fear for what would most likely happen to him if he said no without a reason.

"You _do_ know how to play pinochle?" He asked, eyeing Percy with suspicion.

"I'm afraid not."

"I'm afraid not, _sir_."

"Sir." Percy repeated, obviously not liking him more and more.

"Well, it is, along with gladiator fighting and Pac-Man, one of the greatest games ever invented by humans. I would expect all _civilized_ young men to know the rules." He told Percy.

"I'm sure the boy can learn." Chiron chimed in.

"Please… What is this place? What am I doing here? Mr. Brun–Chiron, why would you go to Yancy Academy just to teach me?" Annie sighed and looked at him with a bored expression, wondering how long it would take for her to be able to scare him so badly that he needed to go to an insane asylum. But while she thought that, Mr. D snorted in reply.

"I asked the same question." He said dealing the cards, causing Grover to flinch every time he received one from the immortal director. Chiron sympathetically smiled at Percy, making it easy to read what he was going to say while she played with a lock of her dark hair, looking at Percy as well.

"I'm only going to say it nicely to you since Chiron told me to do so because you're new here and didn't know anything until the attack, but you're like the rest of us campers here and no one can tell you anything different. I knew what I was and who…" She then stopped as she noticed Mr. D looking at her with a suspicious gleam in his eyes, making her flinch and hide behind the centaur.

"You've been here for years and yet no one has claimed you, child… You say that you know who you're father is but you won't tell anyone the truth. Who is your father and don't think that you can make an excuse to keep from anyone finding out…! Soon enough, you will be found out." He threatened, making her whimper and tremble a little bit, while Chiron softly comforted her.

"You don't have to say it right now, Andromeda… In time, we will know who you belong to and you'll stay in the cabin instead of in that dark room of yours." She then shook her head, not moving from her spot behind him.

"No, papa made me promise on the Styx. So no one will know until the time is right…" Annie murmured, knowing that only Chiron heard her right then. He then looked at Percy again, still having the same smile upon his face.

"Percy… Did your mother tell you nothing?"

"She said…" He then paused, a pained feeling ran though her as she looked at the older demigod recall about his mother.

"She told me she was afraid to send me here, even though my father had wanted her to. She said that once I was here, I probably couldn't leave. She wanted to keep me close to her."

"Typical…! That's how they usually get killed. Young man, are you bidding or not?"

"What?" He then explained, impatiently, about how to bid in this game and Percy followed his instructions.

"I'm afraid there's too much to tell. I'm afraid our usual orientation film won't be sufficient." Chiron simply commented.

"Orientation film?"

"No. Well, Percy. You know your friend Grover is a satyr. You know–" He explained to the shoe box that contained the bull's horn.

"That you killed the Minotaur. No small feat, either, lad. What you may not know is that great powers are at work in your life. Gods – the forces you call the Greek gods – are very much alive." He then stared at everyone at the table, including Annie, as if waiting for someone to say this was all a big joke.

"Um… Percy, you seem like we're trying to pull a joke, but we're not. This is part of our lives. At this table, you're like me… Sort of… I have a different papa then you." Annie said simply as she had recovered from her fear a moment ago.

"Oh, a royal marriage. Trick! Trick!" Mr. D called out with a cackle as he was tallying up points.

"Mr. D, if you're not going to eat it, could I have your Diet Coke can?" Grover asked timidly. Annie sighed and looked away from the game for a moment, looking over the grounds where the campers ran about, only smiling a little bit when she noticed Luke before he ran off somewhere else.

"Eh? Oh, all right." That was when she heard the sound of a crunch and metal being chewed.

"Wait, you're telling me there's such a thing as God." Percy asked, making Annie mumble in reply to him.

"Dieux, non dieu…" She could easily tell that he was looking at her with confusion about how she was speaking in a different language then a moment ago, but it would've been easy to tell that she spoke French by the accent that occupied a little part of her speech.

"Andromeda, what did I tell you about that, my dear?" The young girl then looked at Chiron and shook her head.

"I didn't say anything mean, Chiron, I was only correcting him. Honest. I swear on the Styx that I didn't say anything that would make fun of or insult him."

"Um… Correcting me? About what?"

"What you said a moment ago. You made a simple mistake that's common for those who…"

"Andromeda…"

"Okay, I'll behave…" She replied, taking her seat next to the centaur and crossing her hands upon her lap.

"Well, now… God – capital _G_, God. That's a different matter altogether. We shan't deal with the metaphysical."

"Metaphysical? But you were just talking about–"

"Ah, gods, plural, as in, great beings that control the forces of nature and human endeavors: the immortal gods of Olympus. That's a smaller matter."

"Smaller?"

"He really wasn't taught anything else but what you told him, Chiron. I saw how his…"

"Andromeda, if you mind…?" Chiron interrupted, making her keep quiet again.

"Now, where was I…?"

"You were explaining about what you meant." Annie spoke up softly, just to fix the fact that she made him loose track of what he was saying.

"Yes, quiet." He said, looking at Percy.

"The gods we discussed in Latin class."

"Zeus… Hera. Apollo. You mean them." Annie then began to fidget with her sash around her waist as there was distant thunder without the signs of rain.

"Young man… I would really be less casual about throwing those names around, if I were you." Mr. D warned, apparently being kind of ignored by the young teen.

"But they're stories. They're – myths, to explain lightning and the seasons and stuff. They're what people believed before there was science." Annie then started laughing at him, knowing that he was living with ordinary people for way too long.

"Really? That's what you think? Can that science of yours explain about your encounter with Pasiphae's son? Because that's something only _**OUR**_ kind of logic can explain."

"Science! And tell me, Perseus Jackson, what will people thing of your 'science' two thousand years from now? Hmm?" Mr. D scoffed, which Percy had flinched at what seemed to be his real name.

'_So, he has a Greek name like I do, too.'_ Annie thought before looking at Chiron's cards. It was obvious that Mr. D wasn't going to win this game… Again, because of the old centaur's skills at the game.

"They will call it primitive mumbo jumbo. That's what. Oh, I love mortals – they have absolutely no sense of perspective. They think they've come _so-o-o_ far. And have they, Chiron? Look at this boy and tell me." He stated.

"I agree with Ashley about how she thinks about 'science' that mortals come up with, it's laughable." Chiron shook his head about what was happening while the satyr that was sitting with them was just minding his own business and keeping his mouth shut.

"Percy, you may choose to believe or not, but the fact is that _immortal_ means immortal. Can you imagine that for a moment, never dying? Never fading? Existing, just as you are, for all time?" Chiron asked, mentioning that always made her remember that, once before, her father had offered the both of them eternal life. For her mother right then and for herself once she was between the ages of fourteen and sixteen. It was easy to see that he didn't wish to loose her as he did with many others, but he also didn't want to see her stay so young and never learn how life is like before she could stay the same for all time.

"You mean, whether people believed in you or not…"

"Exactly. If you were a god, how would you like being called a myth, an old story to explain lightning? What if I told you, Perseus Jackson, that some day people would call _you_ a myth, just created to explain how little boys can get over loosing their mothers?" She then hung her head, looking at her fingers as they now played with the rosary hanging around her neck.

"I wouldn't like it. But I don't believe in gods."

"Oh, you'd better, before one of them incinerates you." Mr. D murmured.

"P-please, sir. He's just lost his mother. He's in shock." Grover pleaded, trying his best to nervously defend his friend.

"A lucky thing, too…" He grumbled, playing a card, but he didn't get to say anything else quiet yet because Annie chimed into the conversation again.

"Balourd serviteur… You only don't believe what is the truth because you do not search out the answers. Now then, think exactly what you'd act and look like if you understood what is all around us instead of what that place you and other ordinary people call a school teach you."

"What are you talking about?" At this point, Annie's eyes grew to become a dark blue, almost black, as she looked at Percy, clenching her fists a little to keep her from yelling.

"What I'm saying, take in the big picture instead of thinking what you were fed all your life with people that would only cause trouble like the meutrier who–!" Before she could finish what she was saying, Chiron gently took one of her tiny hands in his and softly squeezed it to keep her from bursting out.

"That's enough, my child… You don't want to have a relapse of your depression after this kind of progress over your condition." She then closed her eyes, breathing deeply as she tried to keep calm. Her shoulders relaxed as she listened to what Chiron explained, only opening her eyes, revealing that they were the usual shimmering sapphire color again, and looked up at him.

"Better?"

"Yes, Chiron… Sorry that I was about to have a mental breakdown again." Mr. D then shook his head, still grumbling about his punishment at the camp.

"Bad enough I'm confined to this miserable job, working with boys like you who don't even believe… And worse, little girls who, for years, locked herself away in one of the rooms and was being treated as a mental patient…!" Before Annie could raise an argument, Chiron had stopped her again to make sure that she was kept out of harms way.

Right then, Mr. D waved his hand and a goblet appeared upon the table and began to fill itself with dark red wine. Percy gawked at the fact that it appeared out of no where, like a little child that fell for a simple magic trick, while Chiron barely looked at him.

"Mr. D, your restrictions." He warned, causing the immortal to look at the wine and pretend that he was surprised.

"Dear me." He then looked up at the sky.

"Old habits! Sorry!" Mr. D yelled, which was replied with more thunder, before he waved his hand again, changing it to another can of Diet Coke. He sighed unhappily as he popped open the soda and went back to the game. Chiron then winked at Percy.

"Mr. D offended his father a while back, took a fancy to a wood nymph who had bee declared off-limits."

"A wood nymph." Percy repeated, still gazing at the can of soda, as if he wasn't really all there.

"Yes. Father loves to punish men. The first time, Prohibition. Ghastly! Absolutely horrid the years! The second time – well, she was really pretty, and I couldn't stay away – the second time, he sent me here. Half-Blood Hill. Summer camp for brats like you. 'Be a better influence' he told me. 'Work with youths rather than tearing them down'. Ha! Absolutely unfair." He complained like a little child, as if she was actually older than him.

"C'est si bête ... Et c'est la peine pour nous les enfants d'être avec lui."

"Andromeda, I think you've said your part well enough, child." Chiron commented, knowing that they both knew only one immortal would be able to understand her when she was speaking in French instead of English or Greek.

"Okay, Chiron… I was only speaking out my mind and that's the only way I can say my mind without anyone saying anything about it." Annie answered with a small smile on her face, causing him to just shake his head a little.

"You know that the only people in camp that would be able to understand you when you're speaking French are from the _her_ cabin."

"I know. That's kind of the point of it mainly and if they're around, I'll keep my mouth shut until they leave." She giggled while Mr. D was just ignoring everything, playing his game and complaining.

"And… Your father is…" Percy stammered, probably still in shock as well as trying to continue the previous conversation.

"_Di immortales_, Chiron, I thought you taught this boy the basics. My father is Zeus, of course." The young girl studied the older boy as he tried to grasp the current situation, shaking her head as she mentally imagined how his train-of-thought was like. And that was a train wreck for now.

"Vous devriez garder un livre sur tout le monde avec vous si vous prenez ce temps pour penser à qui il est, Percy."

"I believe you spoke enough French for now, Andromeda."

"Sorry, Chiron… I'm used to talking to papa like that when I saw him. Mama did so, too, so I do it subconsciously at times."

"Then, please, translate your last comment." She sighed and looked at Percy, who was gazing at her with a look of confusion upon his face.

"What I said a second ago was 'you should keep a book about everyone with you if you take this long to think of who he is' and that's it. I was giving him advice that it would make things much easier for him until he's used to everything." Mr. D smirked at her comment, obviously not going to allow himself to laugh at the moment, while Grover was trying to silence the chuckle that was emitted from his throat.

"Well, at least she's honest." Grover said quickly to cover up the fact that he had laughed at his friend. But right then, what seemed to be a little light went off in Percy's head.

"You're Dionysus. The god of wine."

"What do they say these days, Grover? Do the children say, 'Well, duh!'?" He retorted, rolling his eyes as well in the process.

"Y-yes, Mr. D."

"Then, well, duh! Percy Jackson. Do you think I was Aphrodite, perhaps?"

'_If he __**was**__ Aphrodite, then I'd be an emposai.'_ Annie thought as she looked away, sighing as she gazed where Long Island Sound, as Luke had called it, was.

"You're a god."

"Yes, child."

"A god. You." Mr. D then looked at him, his eyes gleaming with a purplish flame. Annie gulped a little at the sight within his eyes, scooting closer to Chiron so that she knew that he wouldn't turn on her next.

"Oh, l'homme ... Vous venez ici et vous avez déjà obtenu fou à vous. Nice vous connaître lors de votre séjour ici, Percy ...!" She muttered quietly, trying not to draw attention towards herself.

"Would you like to test me, child?" The god said quietly.

"No. No, sir." The fire then died a little from within his eyes and he turned back to the card game.

"I believe I win."

"Not quite, Mr. D." He stated as he set down his cards, a straight, and tallied the points.

"The game goes to me." By the look on Percy's face, it seemed like he believed that the god would kill Chiron because he lost, which made her smile a little as Mr. D only sighed from the common fact that he'd never win before getting up and Grover followed his example.

"I'm tired. I believe I'll take a nap before the sing-along tonight. But first, Grover, we need to talk, _again_, about your less-than-perfect performance on this assignment." That was when the young satyr began sweating nervously.

"Y-yes, sir."

"Please, don't be too harsh on him, Mr. D…! He tried his best and I can vouch for him because of my premonitions from nights ago, you can even ask Luke since I told him while Chiron was away and I also wrote it down in my journal. Grover was able to find and protect Percy from being caught so far from here and made sure that he was brought all this way." Annie quickly spoke up, only to shrink away from him and hide behind Chiron again when he leered at her.

"You're only a little child and just because Chiron says that you have the gift of foresight doesn't mean that I'll accept what you say." He commented then turned to Percy.

"Cabin eleven, Percy Jackson. And mind your manners."

"Will Grover be okay?" Percy asked Chiron as he watched Grover follow the god miserably and got a troubled nod in reply.

"Old Dionysus isn't really mad. He just hates his job."

"And his punishments and a majority of the demigods…" Annie quietly mumbled, noticing that Percy glanced at her with a confused look again. She was used to it by now, having been isolated from others and being a wanderer made it easy to accept the fact that she wouldn't really be understood by anyone. After all, she was so much different than everyone around her, who've had the experience of ordinary children while she had learned of how a life of secrecy, hard work as well as danger every day she had lived outside the camp.

"Thank you for you comment but it wasn't quite needed at the moment, my dear."

"If you say so." Chiron then cleared his throat and began to continue.

"Now where was I… Ah yes. He been… ah, grounded, I guess you would say, and he can't stand waiting another century before he's allowed to go back to Olympus." Annie sighed and looked at Chiron.

"Chiron, may I be excused from this conversation now, s'il vous plaît? If I stay here any longer, I might just make a rude comment about how this conversation will probably turn out. Just the discussion of how the immortals are living among the mortals might end up with me being insulting to him when I said I would be nice to him since he's new."

"Yes, Andromeda, you may. If you go find Luke, he can explain anything that you wish to know about the camp and, if he doesn't mind, he can give you a tour."

"Do I have to go to Cabin Eleven as well, Chiron?"

"No, you might be still too unstable to join other campers in a cabin yet so you will stay in your room until we know that you are able to stay in one as well as whoever your immortal father is." She then nodded and gave him a hug before leaving, pausing when she stood next to Percy as she gazed at him, feeling the surge of energy around him like a whirlpool. Annie the shook her head to rid herself of that clinging feeling and left the two so they could talk.

Quickly and quietly, she ran among the shadows as her eyes darted about as she searched for Luke and looked about t camp. When she was near the stables, the pegasi whinnied in fear at her presence there, making her flinch back with a saddened expression because of that. If anyone understood them, her father's identity would be revealed.

Unexpectedly, someone placed their hand upon her shoulder, causing her to jump while she covered her mouth from almost letting out a shriek.

"Annie? When did you get out of the Big House?" The person said, catching her attention and instantly turning around with a bright smile.

"Luke, I was just looking for you to tell you the news! I'm going to be joining the other campers!" He then laughed and picked her up like she was his little sister and swung her around.

"That's great! That means that you can join us and show what you can do in battle, Annie." She laughed as well, like she used to when she was with her mother, then hugged him when she was back on the ground.

"I actually left the Big House when the new camper arrived that night. He needed help and he'll be going to your cabin but I'm still stuck in my room. Chiron said that I might still be a bit unstable even though I'm showing progress." Luke then patted her on the head, still smiling at the young gypsy.

"Well, I guess for now, I can give you a quick tour. After all, I'm gonna have to greet the new guy."

"Warning you now, he's slow on the updates of being a demigod… Percy doesn't really understand what he'll be expected to do and danger is going to surround him more than anyone from what the cards tell me. Looks like I might be following him to make sure that he doesn't die or something like that." He shook his head at her comment then ruffled up her hair a little, before giving her a piggy-back ride and started to show her around.

* * *

**A.N. ~ **Okay, I'm betting that you're all wondering what she said in French, right? Well, here's the translations below.

**"Dieux, non dieu…" **-Gods, not god...-

**"Balourd serviteur…" **-Foolish boy...-

**"meutrier" **-murderer-

**"C'est si bête ... Et c'est la peine pour nous les enfants d'être avec lui." **-That's so stupid... And that's punishment for us children to be with him.-

**"Vous devriez garder un livre sur tout le monde avec vous si vous prenez ce temps pour penser à qui il est, Percy." **-You should keep a book about everyone with you if you take this long to think of who he is, Percy.-

**"Oh, l'homme ... Vous venez ici et vous avez déjà obtenu fou à vous. Nice vous connaître lors de votre séjour ici, Percy ...!" **-Oh, man... You just got here and you already got him mad at you. Nice knowing you during your stay here, Percy...!-

**"s'il vous plaît?" **-please?-


	9. 06: A Pleasant Tour and Crazy Waterworks

**Chapter Six: **_**A Pleasant Tour and Crazy Waterworks**_

It was, in Annie's point-of-view, the best tour she could ever ask for. Luke had explained and showed every little detail and inch of the camp from top to bottom… Well, except for the inside of the cabins. She didn't really want to intrude, wasn't her kind of nature to do so when it came to that majority of the time since sometimes she just couldn't help it.

He told a little of the pranks that were pulled on each of the cabins as they passed them, even about the one of the "golden mango" gag that was created by the Stoll brothers. Long story short, an all out war in the Aphrodite cabin that was caused by a mango painted gold with the words "For the Hottest" written on it. Most likely, that probably happened either during her unstable time or she wasn't even at the camp.

Annie eventually began walking beside him, holding his hand even though she said she was okay without doing so, gazing at the campers and every last thing as he led her towards the cabin's once again.

"So, which cabin do you think you like the most, Annie?"

"Any of them are fine since they represent the immortals, but it's obvious that I won't be welcomed as happily as it is now once they find out who papa is… He doesn't even have a cabin. It's not fair, Luke…" He then smiled a little at her, understanding the fact that she wasn't like everyone else.

"It's okay, everything will change for the better soon enough. Eventually, there'll be a place for everyone once that oath of the Big Three is over." She then looked up at him and stopped walking, her smile vanished as she looked up at him.

"Luke, you shouldn't be speaking like that. You could anger them, for all you know, if they heard you… Besides, I still wouldn't be accepted like everyone else, I'm too different and nothing will change that fact." Annie answered, letting go of his hand as she began to fiddle with her camp shirt. Her eyes became hazy as she seemed to stare off into space.

"No one that is currently here will be the one to truly accept who I am… That person won't be here for a long time and I have yet to meet them. There will be others who I meet, but they won't completely understand me like they do with everyone else." She spoke softly, closing her eyes and shaking her head as she snapped back to reality.

"I hate it when that happens… Eventually, I'll be able to control when I get them unlike the Oracle." Annie explained while Luke took one of her hands again.

"Let's just get back to my cabin, Annie. I have to welcome the newbie."

"Right." She answered sweetly, not arguing at all as he led her back to Cabin eleven, built for demigods of Hermes' as well as unclaimed children. When they began to come close to the brassier, her feet were frozen in place as she noticed the supposed young girl that was tending the flames. Fear filled her as she looked at the fire and the girl, the flickering flames reminding her of the years gone by as she felt herself grow instantly cold as if she was being frozen in ice, only snapping back to reality when Luke knelt in front of her and snapped a few times in front of her eyes.

"You okay, Annie?" She then shook herself free from the feeling and looked at him again.

"Désolé, Luke… I was having a small relapse when I saw the brassier just now. Flashbacks and all…" Annie said, trying to smile.

'_What really scares me at the moment is the one tending to the fire…'_ He then nodded and began to lead her back to his cabin again, this time she didn't look at the brassier or the girl.

On their way to the Hermes cabin, a large camper stopped them. She had long brown hair and an extremely large camp shirt, a sneer was upon her face. Just by what Annie had seen from her view out her bedroom window, she knew that scaring her as well as the rest of her cabin would be fun.

"And what do we have here? Fresh meat?" The bulky girl asked.

"No, I've been here for three years and from what I've watched, I only have one thing to do." Annie explained, making Luke a little nervous while the girl just seemed too over-confident to know what the little girl was planning.

"Oh, and what would that be, shrimp?" The girl asked, only to double over from a sudden hard elbow to the gut and falling to the ground because Annie had slammed herself into the back of the girls legs before returning to Luke's side with a bright smile.

"I've been waiting to do that for years now! Let's go Luke!" Annie said cheerfully before they started to walk away, leaving the girl to yell at them from a distance.

"So, who is she? I only know that she's a big meanie."

"Her name is Clarisse la Rue. She's a child of Ares."

"No wonder she'd mean." Annie replied, both of them laughing from the current event.

Once they reached the cabin, she looked inside with a curious gleam in her eyes. She finally was able to see the inside of a cabin in the camp, it intrigued her so much that she almost forgot that other campers lived in there. Her senses crackled as someone tried to take her mother's rosary, grabbing the person's hand in a split second and squeezing it tightly at the palm and wrist to where she made them let out a small gasp of pain. Her eyes were instantly shifted to obsidian as she glared darkly at the camper, obviously one of the children of Hermes.

"Ne vous avisez pas de toucher chapelet ma maman…! If you ever try to do that again, not even you will know what happened to yourself. I may be young, but I'm no fool to be taken lightly. I'm one of the demigod's that you should worry about the most since I can and am dangerous." Annie softly snapped at him before releasing their hand and allowing Luke to drag her back to his side.

"Annie, you shouldn't do that to them. That's one way to not make any friends." She then looked back up at him as her eyes were shifting back to their usual sapphire color and nodded.

"I didn't know that… It's just that I'm very attached to mama's rosary since it's one of the last things I received for my birthday from her." He then patted her on the head, trying not to be mad at her even though it was pretty hard to stay mad at a little girl.

"It's alright, but say your sorry, Annie. Even though I know that you're still not used to being around others, you can't do that." She then nodded again and bowed her head.

"Je suis désolé pour ce que j'ai fait… Please, forgive me. I'm still getting used to being around other people. I won't be joining any of the cabins because Chiron doesn't think that I am stable enough yet." She then looked back up at Luke and gave a little smile.

"Was that okay, Luke?"

"Yes, now the next step to making friends is to introduce yourself. Without hurting or threatening anyone." Before she could do or say anything, the door to the cabin opened to where Annabeth and Percy came in but Chiron stayed outside.

"Cabin eleven, make yourself at home." Chiron said, while the campers and Annie there all bowed to him with respect, as Percy began to look about the cabin for how details are like before noticing Annie there, standing beside Luke.

"Andromeda? Why are you here, my dear?" She then turned towards him and gave him a small smile.

"Well, Luke was showing me around the camp and since he had to meet up with Percy, he brought me back here. I thought it would also be a great experience to see how a cabin would be like with other people rather than being alone." He then nodded before taking his leave, most likely going to teach the archery class. Right then, the other's within the Hermes cabin began to stare at their new arrival.

"Well? Go on." Annabeth said, which Percy tripped coming in through the door and making himself seem even more worthless than Annie thought before while others in the cabin where snickering without saying anything.

"Percy Jackson, meet cabin eleven." The blonde daughter of Athena announced.

"Regular or undetermined?" Annie heard someone ask out of no where from behind her. Annabeth seemed to have the answer while Percy seemed lost.

"Undetermined." Just at that answer, the entire cabin groaned. Luke then came forward, which seemed like he was going to do more than just get the others to calm down.

"Now, now, campers. That's what we're here for. Welcome, Percy. You can have that spot on the floor, right over there." He said, smiling.

"This is Luke." Annabeth spoke up, sounding like she was somewhat in a trance, and Annie noticed the soft blush that was spread across her face but only to harden herself back up when Percy looked at her.

"He's your counselor for now."

"For now?" Percy asked while Annie quickly went over to Luke, not wanting to accidently lash out at someone and make him mad again.

"You're undetermined. They don't know what cabin to put you in, so you're here. Cabin eleven takes all newcomers, all visitors. Naturally, we would. Hermes, our patron, is the god of travelers." Luke explained with a patient tone as Annie grabbed onto his hand, still believing that he and Chiron were the only people she could trust for now. She still wasn't sure about Annabeth, even though Luke had said that she could, and Percy… His fate kind of scared her since she couldn't perceive what he will do in the future. All she knew was that his fate was hidden from her.

Percy seemed to be cautious as he was about to place his horn down, at least he remembered about what Hermes was the god of compared to his previous moment. He then looked at the other campers inside the cabin, most likely noticing that some of them seemed like they were waiting to steal from him like they tried to do with Annie.

"How long will I be here?"

"Good question, until you're determined." Luke answered.

"How long will that take?"

"That depends, that's just until your père immortel claims you to where you join your cabin." Annie stated, while the others laughed at Percy.

"Come on, I'll show you the volleyball court." Annabeth said, obviously trying to get him out of there.

"I've already seen it."

"Come on." She the grabbed his wrist and dragged him outside while the cabin was still laughing at him. Annie then looked up at Luke, not really sure if it was a good idea or not.

"I'm gonna follow them."

"You interested in the new guy?" Luke teased, only getting her shaking her head in reply.

"Something about him makes me curious… Besides, he's not my type and his future is hidden from me. It bothers me to no end, so I want to keep a close eye on him." He then laughed and ruffled her hair again, letting her leave to follow Percy.

Quietly, Annie hid in the shadows, observing the older two demigods.

"What's your problem? All I know is, I killed some bull guy–"

"Don't talk like that!" Annabeth yelled at him. Apparently, she got there to listen into their conversation a little late since they were already arguing.

"You know how many kids at this camp wish they'd had your chance?"

"To get killed?"

"To fight the Minotaur! What do you think we train for?"

'_He wouldn't understand that since he's been under the radar for years…' _She thought while Percy shook his head.

"Look, if he thing I fought really was _the_ Minotaur, the same one in the stories…"

"Yes."

"Then there's only one."

"Yes."

"And he died, like, a gajillion years ago, right? Theseus killed him in the labyrinth. So…"

"Monsters don't die, Percy. They can be killed. But they don't die."

"Oh, thanks. That clears it up."

'_He's dumber then I thought! Now, why did I save him again…?'_

"They don't have souls, like you and me. You can dispel them for a while, maybe even for a whole lifetime if you're lucky. But they are primal forces. Chiron calls them arche types. Eventually, they re-form." Percy then seemed in thought, apparently thinking of something that might have happened to him before.

"You mean, if I killed one, accidently, with a sword–"

"The Fur… I mean, your math teacher. That's right. She's still out there. You just made her very, very mad."

'_Wait… He's also killed one of papa's Furies? He's not going to be happy about that once he hears this from the one that was killed…'_

"How did you know about Mrs. Dodds?"

"You talk in your sleep."

"You almost called her something. A Fury? They're Hades' torturers, right?"

'_Wow… I was kinda wrong about him being dumb. He at least has a brain.' _Annie thought while the blonde Athenian glanced around nervously at the ground, like she thought it would suddenly create an abyss to the underworld or that the Fury would appear out of no where and attack.

"You shouldn't call them by name, even here. We call them the Kindly Ones, if we have to speak of them at all."

"Look, is there anything we _can _say without it thundering? Why do I have to stay in cabin eleven, anyway? Why is everyone so crowded together? There are plenty of empty bunks right over there." Percy whined, pointing to the empty cabins while Annabeth turned pale from the questions.

"You don't just choose a cabin, Percy. It depends on who your parents are. Or… Your parent."

"My mom is Sally Jackson. She works at the candy store in Grand Central Station. At least, she used to."

"I'm sorry about your mom, Percy. But that's not what I mean. I'm talking about your other parent. Your dad."

"He's dead. I never knew him."

'_I take back what I said a second ago… He still doesn't get anything at all for a new camper.'_

"Your father's not dead, Percy."

"How can you say that? You know him?"

"No, of course not."

"Then how can you say–"

"Because I know _you_. You wouldn't be here if you weren't one of us."

'_Or if I didn't help save him and instruct to stab the Minotaur with its own horn…'_

"You don't know anything about me."

"No?" Her voice then brought Annie's attention more towards her before looking at the two of them again.

"I bet you moved around from school to school. I bet you were kicked out of a lot of them."

"How–"

"Diagnosed with dyslexia. Probably ADHD, too."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

'_Obviously everything, genius…'_ Annie retorted sarcastically. She knew that if she was like them by going to school and living in one location for years, she'd definitely understand the feeling but she only knew the reason for not being able to read in English like normal people and that she had the same diagnosis as any other demigod.

"Taken together, it's almost a sure sign. The letters float off the page when you read, right? That's because your mind is hardwired for ancient Greek. And the ADHD – you're impulsive, can't sit still in the classroom. As for the attention problems, that's because you see too much, Percy, not too little. Your senses are better than a regular mortal's. Of course the teachers want you medicated. Most of them are monsters. They don't want you seeing them for what they are."

"You sound like… You went through the same thing?"

"Most of the kids here did. If you weren't like us, you couldn't have survived the Minotaur, much less the ambrosia and nectar." By this point, Annie decided not to listen to all of their conversation. She sighed as she fingered the rosary, remembering her mother just as if she had left her just yesterday. That is, until a familiar voice perked up and brought her attention to the two and the four children of Ares that had made their entrance into the conversation and Clarisse was in the front.

"Well! A newbie!" Apparently, the bigger camper didn't remember the small attack that Annie had done to her that day.

"Clarisse, Why don't you go polish your spear or something?" Annabeth had sighed, easy to tell that she was annoyed by the child of Ares and her bullying ways.

"Sure, Miss Princess. So I can run you through with it Friday night."

'_Great… That Clarisse girl is a lutte contre le singe just as I thought…'_

"_Erre es korakas!_ You don't stand a chance." Annabeth yelled out, surprising Annie since she didn't know that she had the bravery to say that. But, then again, children of Athena and Ares never really did get along.

"We'll pulverize you. Who's this little runt?"

"Percy Jackson, meet Clarisse, Daughter of Ares."

"Like… The war god?"

"You got a problem with that?" Clarisse stated with a sneer on her face.

"No. It explains the bad smell." Annie giggled softly, covering her mouth so that they couldn't hear her.

"I may not have been able to get that little girl because of how quickly she left but… We got an initiation ceremony for newbies, Prissy." Clarisse growled.

"Percy."

"Whatever. Come on, I'll show you."

"Clarisse–" Annabeth tried to say something, but Clarisse was still deciding to answer by growling.

"Stay out of it, wise girl." It was obvious that Annabeth couldn't do anything in this situation while Percy handed her the horn, but that didn't mean that Annie couldn't.

"Laissez-le tranquille, fille d'Arès!" She yelled out as she got out of the shadows, blocking the way for the four girls taking Percy away. A sneer and hateful gleam appeared within Clarisse's eyes as the young gypsy stood in front of them.

"Out of the way, brat! You'll get your turn soon enough and worse than his for what you did to me! And what did you say to me?" Clarisse yelled, not noticing that the young girls eyes were turning completely obsidian, leaving no trace of white in them.

"I said _'leave him alone, daughter of Ares'_! And if you think that you can do what you like to those who are new, then I warn you to heed my words, Clarisse…! I might be younger and smaller than you, but it's you and anyone else who follows your example that will pay. By the Lazuli power and name, I call upon a gypsies curse that will cause you to hallucinate for each person you harmed and be haunted by spirits of those who have passed on." Annie claimed as she was looking at Clarisse and her 'sisters', which they flinched back from seeing her eyes seem lifeless.

"Like you can put a curse on us, brat!" She laughed, knocking the little girl to the ground and continuing to drag Percy into the girls bathroom while he tried to fight back without success. Annie then glared at her from the ground, filled with rage.

"Donc, j'ai proclamé, que ma malédiction s'abattre sur les enfants d'Arès…" Annie hissed as she pulled herself to her feet, hatred filled every fiber of her being. When she managed to join Annabeth at the door, her rage subsided when she noticed what was going on. She heard the sounds of moving water as well as the pipes seeming like they were going to move from the walls.

In a few seconds, Clarisse had been hit in the face by a gush of toilet water, causing Annie's jaw to drop. She couldn't believe what she was witnessing even more than when she saw her first hellhound pup that her father brought for a little while to let her play with when she was four. Not only was she drenched, but when the other three tried to assist, they fell victim to the water as well.

_'__Incroyable ...! Est-il ...?'_ She thought before quickly pulling away from the water that started to surge outside of the cement bathroom, watching as the four children of Ares were sent flying out. She then looked back inside, seeing Percy was sitting in the only dry spot in the entire bathroom. Unfortunately, Annabeth had also been a casualty to this encounter and she wasn't moving from the spot she was standing since it first started.

"How did you…" Annabeth started as Percy was standing, his legs shaky from the experience.

"I don't know." He replied, not noticing that Annie was still there, silent since all the words in her head wouldn't come out so that she would be noticed. The two had then left the small area and Annie pulled away into the shadow again from the shock, now seeing Clarisse and the other three were covered in mud while a bunch of campers surrounded them, gawking from the sight. When she had saw Percy, the look was of pure hatred.

"You are dead, new boy. You are totally dead."

"You want to gargle with toilet water again, Clarisse? Close your mouth." Percy replied while the four left, dragging he flailing girl.

"What?" Percy asked with a bit of a demanding tone to the blonde camper. Annie gulped as she watched the girl get dragged away, deciding to make her escape before anyone noticed her there and made her way back towards the Big House, not wanting to know what happened after that excitement for the day.

* * *

**TRANSLATION(S)**

**"Désolé" **-Sorry-

**"Ne vous avisez pas de toucher chapelet ma maman"** -Don't you dare touch my mama's rosary-

**"Je suis désolé pour ce que j'ai fait."** -I'm sorry for what I did.-

**"père immortel"** -immortal father-

**"lutte contre le singe"** -fighting monkey-

**"Laissez-le tranquille, fille d'Arès!" **-Leave him alone, daughter of Ares!-

**"Donc, j'ai proclamé, que ma malédiction s'abattre sur les enfants d'Arès." **-So I have proclaimed, let my curse befall the children of Ares.-

**"Incroyable ...! Est-il ...?"** -Incredible...! Is he...?-


	10. 07: Too long a title Look in story

**Chapter Seven: **_**Finish to a Long Day and the Forced Conversation**_

Chiron had a long chat with her about how her day was so far, listening to everything that she explained even though she left out a few details here and there like her threat to the child of Hermes and the curse she had brought upon the Ares cabin. At a few things that she mentioned, Chiron chuckled by how she talked so excitedly about everything.

"So you enjoyed your first official day out of the Big House?"

"Oui! But what did Clarisse mean by Friday before she got herself drenched?" She asked, taking a sip of the tea that the centaur gave her.

"She was talking about our usual game of Capture the Flag. We hold it every Friday before the sing-a-long around the camp fire."

"Am I allowed to play, too?" He then sighed and patted her head gently.

"I'm afraid you're not ready to join them in playing yet, my dear… When we're sure that you're capable of doing so, we'll allow you to join the game with the other campers."

"Alright…" Annie replied, pouting a little and looking like she was about to cry, trying to see if she could make him allow her to play.

"That's not going to work and you know that, Andromeda. Besides, you don't even know how to play."

"But isn't it just like a battle? Two sides against each other trying to fight for the same reason?"

"Sort of… The campers aren't really fighting. It's only a battle game to test the skills of a camper and allow them to have fun and the teams to show off what they can do. Even though you're not playing this week, I'll allow you to watch and learn the meaning of the game from a safe distance." She then nodded with a sigh before sipping on her tea again, deciding to end this pointless argument about her playing as well. Annie then placed her empty glass down and stood up from her seat.

"Can I be excused, Chiron? I want to run around and find out anything I can about the camp on my own."

"You may, but make sure that you join everyone at the dining pavilion at seven-thirty. You'll sit with me or, if you wish, with Luke's cabin even though they'll be very crowded."

"Okay!" She giggled before running out into the sunshine again. With a smile, she decided to spy on Percy again. Once again, she arrived late in the conversation but decided to listen all the same.

"But that hardly ever happens. The last time…" Annabeth cut herself off, leaving curiosity to run wild about what they were talking about.

"Back in the sick room, when you were feeding me that stuff–"

"Ambrosia."

"Yeah. You asked me something about the summer solstice."

"So you _do_ know something?" The blonde asked, her shoulders tense about their conversation.

"Well… No."

'_Isn't he helpful…'_ Annie thought, shaking her head from disbelief.

"Back at my old school, I overheard Grover and Chiron talking about it. Grover mentioned the summer solstice. He said something like we didn't have much time, because of the deadline. What did that mean?" Before answering, she clenched her fists while the young gypsy leaned a little forward as she listened carefully to them.

"I wish I knew. Chiron and the satyrs, they know, but they won't tell me. Something is wrong in Olympus, something pretty major. Last time I was there, everything seemed so _normal_."

"You've been to Olympus?"

"Some of us year-rounders–" Then everything went quiet for her as well as her sight. Everything turned dark and cold as she heard voices and murmurs. Some were audible, talking about the solstice and the immortals on Olympus, but those that she couldn't make out properly blurred together. That's when the ghostly images appeared before her.

A battle or war that was going on, two people were fighting amongst each other with swords with people watching while another scene was set. Two boys talking to each other, their body garbed in armor and wielding blades until all different scenes began to come one after the other, clouding her mind and filling her with pain from the cries that came from them.

The voices and surroundings suddenly became silent again as she seemed to be standing before a large abyss right at the edge, looking into the darkness that was there as if she was about to fall into the pit. She could hear chuckling from deep within its depths, sending shivers down her spine and making her grow cold.

"_It seems that you're quiet the gifted little child, aren't you…? You'll do nicely to lead them to me."_

"_Wh-what do you mean…?"_ She stammered, her voice faint no matter how much she tried to raise it as well as being unable to move.

"_Bring me what the gods are fighting about as well as the boy. Assist bringing me Zeus's symbol of power and the boy and I'll let you and your little friends live."_ Annie then shut her eyes tightly and screamed out as loud as she could while the echoing voice laughed while the air was now ripped from her lungs, falling to the ground and trembling from fear as she curled up and covered her ears from the voice as well as gasping for air after screaming. Her heart was beating rapidly to the point where the sound pounded in her ears.

"What the–? Annie?" Percy quickly rushed to her side, trying to calm her down. Once she was able to see him properly again from the foggy haze that filled her eyes, tears welled up as she started to cry and latch onto him tightly as she had done with Chiron and Luke when she was scared. Although he seemed like a naïve person, she could easily tell that he was at least good enough to have some of her trust even if he was a fool in her eyes at the time.

"What happened?" She then sniffled and looked up at him, fear shining in her dark blue eyes.

"I…! I never had a vision like that before…! No, th-that wasn't a vision… That was a message. That person was trying to c-command me to… To…!"

"It's okay, stop crying. Um… Let's get you some help. You said you were unstable, maybe you've been outside for too long."

"No! That wasn't a relapse; someone powerful was trying to bend me to their will! They threatened me!" She sobbed violently. Without saying anything, he pulled Annie to her feet and led her back to the Big House to calm down. When she started to go upstairs, she could hear the older demigod explaining what happened to Chiron, knowing that he'd talk with her about it later but only after she had time to herself alone in her bedroom.

It had been a long while as she was up in her room, her crying voice muffled out by the pillow she was sobbing into, and she now was staring out her window. Just that one vision drew a lot of strength from her to maintain her control and it left her feeling drowsy and weak. With a sigh after calming down, Annie crawled out bed and straightened herself up again but only paused as she looked at herself in the mirror, first seeing herself until her eyes had became misty once again. The reflection showed her more than what she'd normally expect.

The image that was looking back at her was a taller teen with long black hair that cascaded over her shoulders in small waves down to the middle of her back, her skin was creamy white like it was made of porcelain with gleaming blue eyes like they were sparkling sapphires. The clothes she wore was a royal violet dress that ruffled slightly at mid-thigh with fishnet stockings and elbow length gloves and a pair of simple black dress shoes with skulls on the buckles. The teen looked so much like her mother that she couldn't help but feel her eyes sting slightly from the tears that wouldn't come. She had already cried so much for that day.

She smiled at the image as she gently wiped her eyes in case there were still some stray tears, knowing that it was only a simple message to keep her on track for the future.

"Merci… I won't forget." Annie murmured before quickly leaving her room and following Chiron out to the dining pavilion.

Her dark eyes widened as she looked at all the campers that were filed out by their cabins, waving really quickly to Luke, Percy and Annabeth before taking her place beside the centaur. She looked about the pavilion as she stood beside the one person who seemed like her guardian at the camp, completely amazed by the sheer number of people and nature spirits that began to fill the area.

Although she wasn't amused that she had to sit at the same table as the resident god, Annie didn't want to be too far from the elder centaur that practically took care of and raised her since she first arrived at camp. Finally after a moment of normal chatter from the others, Chiron pounded his hoof against the floor of the pavilion to cause everyone to fall silent before raising his glass.

"To the gods!" He called out, getting the same reaction from everyone.

"Pour les dieux…" Annie said softly, her eyes down casted as she did. She kind of felt out of place as she called out to the gods as they had, it just didn't feel like it was quiet part of her just yet because of the isolation she had to deal with for three years. The platters they carried were covered with food: grapes, apples, strawberries, cheese, fresh bread, and barbecue. Lean and healthy so that anyone at the camp had plenty of energy when it came to training and fighting.

The wood nymphs began to serve the usual healthy food that she was accustomed to since her first day at the camp, softly thanking the nature spirits without looking into their faces when they gave her parts of her meal. She sighed softly as she gazed at the tables, noticing that, as usual, her father was left out. A wave of sadness fell over her as she observed this, knowing that if they found out who she really was, that she wouldn't be welcomed there any longer.

"Chai tea…" She said to the goblet, watching it fill with the ginger brown liquid before picking it up, closing her eyes as she smelled the spices that were inside it then drinking it carefully since it was hot. Annie then noticed the others were getting up from their seats with their plates, walking towards the brazier that was in the center of the pavilion. As she stared fearfully at the flames, she almost jumped out of her skin when a hand was placed on her shoulder.

"You're still unable to stand fire yet, are you?" Chiron asked her comfortingly, gaining a nervous nod from the young girl.

"D-do I have to do it like the others…?"

"It's customary to offer a part of your food to the gods, Andromeda. If you wish, you can go with Luke when he does it and see if he could help you so that you're not alone." Annie gulped but followed the others, joining the Hermes cabin as they were heading up to the fire while she quickly stood next to the taller teen.

"Um… Luke? Do you think you can help me? I can't seem to do it alone or else I'll probably have a relapse from looking at the fire." He looked down at her and smiled, chuckling slightly at her request.

"Okay, I'll help. We wouldn't want all that hard work of yours to go to waste, now would we?"

"Merci, Luke." The young demigod said happily, smiling back at him in reply as they came closer and closer to the brazier.

Once it was they reached the bronze brazier, Luke looked down at her while she nervously tossed in one of the slices of brisket before she bowed her head.

"Père, s'il vous plaît aidez-moi ... J'ai besoin de votre force de qui déjà essayé de me contrôler." She prayed before leaving Luke to do his own offering and returning to Chiron's side, her body faintly trembling from being close to the flames.

"You did well, my dear." Chiron told her softly, gaining her attention.

"Non, je n'ai pas... I'm trembling. I asked for papa to give me strength when I offered part of my meal. I didn't get to tell you what happened earlier today. Someone used my powers against me and was trying to bend me to their will… I couldn't move or anything. Chiron, I… I'm scared of the voice that I heard…" She explained to him, her voice almost cracking from fear.

"Calm yourself, Andromeda… We don't want you to be distressed and cause a scene. My child, you can tell me later back at the Big House." The centaur stated, trying to calm her down since she seemed like she was about to cry again and gaining a nod from her but nothing more as she started to silently eat and drink.

Although Chiron had pounded his hoof against the floor to gain everyone's attention for Mr. D to say his announcements, Annie really couldn't keep herself to pay her respects to the god except sit silently and sip her drink. He spoke of the capture the flag game for Friday and of Percy Jackson, the new camper.

Once he was done talking, she looked up to see that the others were already leaving the pavilion and decided to follow along, kind of confused about where they were going until they reached the location with the campfire. No one really noticed her as she sat the farthest from the brilliant fire somewhat in the shadows until Luke had came over to her with some s'mores while laughing and smiling before sitting down next to her.

"Hey, Annie. Why are you sitting back here?" He asked as he offered her one of the gooey treats then noticed that she flinched from the question.

"I'm still not ready to deal with being near fire like everyone else… Luke, it just really scares me." She said softly while she looked at the s'more that he gave her.

"Um… What's this?"

"You can't honestly tell me that you haven't had a s'more before?" Luke asked, chuckling, until he noticed that she looked up at him in confusion.

"You really haven't? Wow, that's kind of surprising… Well, it's a gram cracker with a bit of chocolate and a roasted marshmallow. It's really good, try it." He explained with a smile while she tried her first bite, laughing at how surprised the young demigod looked about it.

"Good, right?" Annie then nodded with a bright smile but didn't answer back verbally as she continued to munch on the warm and somewhat gooey treat.

Later that night, Annie was sitting at her window with a little smile and softly giggling as she was writing down that days events in her journal. But what stopped her and made her pencil freeze was the recollection of the threat she had received in her vision. For a moment, she was absolutely still that she didn't even breathe for a second until she managed to break free from that feeling and continued writing.

'_Papa, I wish you could visit me like you used to… Then I wouldn't feel so lonely even though I made a friend. If you were here, then I could tell you everything that I had foreseen.'_ The young gypsy thought with a sigh as she closed her journal and put it away, now crawling into bed with a yawn.

"Bonne nuit, mon père..." Annie murmured before drifting off to sleep, hoping that she would get to see her immortal father again.

* * *

**A.N.** ~ Thank you for your patience, everyone! I've been having problems not only with writer's block but I've also had MAJOR problems with my computer. The internet wasn't working properly and that means that I couldn't add the little translations that I wanted OR add anything new to my story. It made me kinda depressed when that happened... Well, here's the next chapter and I promise to be working more on my story for everyone to read! Also, sorry if I take too long, but I'm trying to get the right words out and I'm having to work on selling the jewelry that I make and eventually putting them up for sale on the website Etsy. Here's the usual translations below so you're not having to rack your brain(s) over what she was saying! Not that many words to translate this time, luckily. :3

**"Oui!" **-Yes!-

**"Merci" **-Thank you-

**"Pour les dieux!" **-To the gods!-

**"Père, s'il vous plaît aidez-moi ... J'ai besoin de votre force de qui déjà essayé de me contrôler." **-Father, please help me... I need your strength from who ever tried to control me.-

**"Non, je n'ai pas..." **-No, I didn't…-

**"Bonne nuit, mon père..." **-Good night, father…-


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